LA Dodgers "Do Not Want Punishment for 20-Year-Old Who Threw Egg... Request Prevention of Recurrence"

Assault is a 'Crime Not Punishable Without Victim's Consent'... Suspect Will Not Be Prosecuted

The Los Angeles (LA) Dodgers team, who entered Korea to play the Major League Baseball (MLB) Opening Series held in Korea, expressed that they do not wish for the man in his 20s who threw raw eggs at the players upon arrival to be punished.

Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Dodgers, participating in the '2024 Major League Baseball (MLB) World Tour Seoul Series,' is arriving at Incheon International Airport Terminal 1 on the afternoon of the 15th. [Image source=Yonhap News]

On the 19th, the Incheon International Airport Police Unit announced that the Dodgers confirmed their intention not to pursue punishment regarding the recent incident at Incheon Airport where raw eggs were thrown at the Dodgers team. Through a Korean event agency, the Dodgers stated, "No player was hit by the raw eggs, so there was no damage," and "We have no intention to punish the suspect." However, they reportedly requested measures to prevent the same incident from happening again when they depart after the Opening Series.

The police plan to dismiss the case against Mr. A (24), who was previously booked without detention on assault charges, as the Dodgers, the victim party, do not wish to press charges. In this case, even if no one was hit by the raw eggs, intentionally throwing eggs can be considered assault. The legal community views that physical force used with the intent to cause harm constitutes assault, even without physical contact. However, assault is a 'quasi-offense' that cannot be prosecuted without the victim's consent. A police official stated, "The victim's position is important in assault cases," and added, "Since the Dodgers have confirmed they do not want punishment, the case will be closed without prosecution."

Earlier, Mr. A was accused of throwing raw eggs at the Dodgers team at 3:08 p.m. on the 15th at the arrival hall of Terminal 1, Incheon Airport. Fortunately, the raw eggs did not reach the players but broke on the floor in front of Dodgers manager Dave Roberts. At that time, the Dodgers team was entering through Incheon Airport to play the two-game MLB regular season Opening Series against the San Diego Padres on the 20th and 21st at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul.

The police arrested Mr. A within an hour and 30 minutes based on CCTV footage installed in Terminal 1. At the time of arrest, Mr. A was sitting on a passenger waiting chair on the 3rd floor of Terminal 1. During the police investigation, he stated, "Why should we welcome foreign players?" and "I just felt bad, so I threw the raw eggs." He also added that he did not aim at manager Roberts but threw the eggs toward the team.

Meanwhile, in 2018, some soccer fans at Incheon Airport threw raw eggs and candy-shaped pillows at Korean national team players including Son Heung-min, who returned from the Russia World Cup, but the Korea Football Association expressed no intention to press charges, and the case was closed as an internal investigation.