The sentence for a group that sold narcotics through the Telegram group chat ‘Obang’ was increased in the second trial. The court judged that this chatroom constituted a criminal organization under the Criminal Act.
The Seoul High Court Criminal Division 5 (Chief Judge Kwon Soon-hyung) sentenced Park, the operator of Obang, to 15 years in prison on the 25th in the appeal trial on charges including violation of the Narcotics Control Act (psychotropic substances). Park was sentenced to a total of 13 years in prison in the first trial, where three cases were handled separately, but the sentence was increased in the appeal trial, which combined the cases for review. Two other Obang operators who were tried together were sentenced to 13 years and 4 years in prison, respectively. Additionally, defendants who acted as intermediate sellers and cash-out agents received sentences ranging from 1 to 10 years in prison. All sentences were the same or heavier than those in the first trial.
Previously, they were indicted on charges of selling narcotics worth approximately 140 million won to 1,100 members through the Telegram group chat ‘Obang’ from June 2020 to March 2021, and laundering 517 million won of criminal proceeds through virtual currency.
The court ruled, “Obang is a criminal group that constitutes an organization with a system in which members, under the common purpose of buying and selling narcotics and laundering proceeds from narcotics sales, repeatedly commit crimes according to assigned roles such as ringleader and intermediate seller.”
Furthermore, the court stated, “While online non-face-to-face drug transactions through Telegram drug rooms are relatively easy to carry out, their detection is quite difficult, making it a social problem. The appellate court recognized the criminal organization nature of Obang and imposed heavier sentences than most of the original sentences,” explaining the reason for sentencing.
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