Main Offender Sentenced to 8 Months Imprisonment with 1-Year Probation
Caught Trying to Pawn Stolen Watch
A man in his 20s who snatched a luxury watch under the pretense of checking its condition during a secondhand goods transaction and fled, along with his accomplices who planned the crime, was sentenced to prison with a suspended sentence.
A pretending to examine a Rolex watch received from a secondhand trader [Image source=Jeju Dongbu Police Station provided closed-circuit (CC) TV, Yonhap News]
On the 18th, Yonhap News reported that the Jeju District Court Criminal Division 3 (Presiding Judge Jeon Yong-su) sentenced A (20), who was indicted on charges of theft and detained, to 8 months in prison with a 1-year suspended sentence. The court also sentenced accomplices B (20) and C (20), who planned the crime, to 10 months in prison with a 2-year suspended sentence each.
A was prosecuted for meeting a female seller in a residential area of Jeju City around 11:15 a.m. on March 1, who had posted a Rolex watch valued at about 19 million KRW on a secondhand goods trading platform, receiving the watch and then fleeing immediately. At the time, A snatched the watch while saying, "I will check the product's condition," and fled right away. It was reported that he was caught by the police while trying to pawn the stolen watch at a pawnshop.
Investigations revealed that these accomplices, who were high school classmates, first planned the crime with B and C, then involved A. During the trial, A and the others admitted all charges and pleaded for leniency.
The court stated, "The defendants committed the crime in a planned manner, which is a serious offense," and pointed out, "Especially in the case of B and C, they involved their high school classmate A, who had no prior criminal record, making their responsibility heavier." The court further explained the sentencing by saying, "However, we considered that the victim did not wish to press charges."
The scene of Mr. A snatching a Rolex watch from a secondhand seller and fleeing[Image source=Jeju Dongbu Police Station provided closed-circuit (CC) TV, Yonhap News]
Crimes related to secondhand trading of Rolex watches continue unabated, requiring caution when trading high-value secondhand goods. In August last year, D, a man in his 30s who tried to steal a Rolex watch worth about 12 million KRW during a transaction, was sentenced to 7 years in prison in the first trial. In January last year, at a restaurant in Seo-gu, Daejeon, he attempted to steal a Rolex watch placed on a table while E (46), whom he met through a secondhand goods trading platform, briefly left the seat. When E chased after him and caught him, D assaulted E multiple times on the face and body, threatened him by putting his hand in and out of his coat pocket saying, "I have a knife. If you come at me, I'll stab you," and caused injury, leading to his indictment.
Also, in February last year, a man in his 20s who was trying to sell a Rolex watch worth about 15 million KRW on a secondhand goods trading platform was robbed of the item. The victim, F (28), had arranged to trade the Rolex watch secondhand and met the buyer in front of his house. The buyer took the watch under the pretext of inspecting it and then fled. F immediately reported to the police, but they said it was difficult to catch the culprit due to lack of clues. Using only the thief’s nickname as a clue, F tracked down the culprit’s identity through internet searches. Under investigation pressure, the culprit eventually surrendered, but the watch had already been sold at a low price. Since the culprit was a first-time offender and a minor, the punishment was expected to be light, leaving only F as the victim. In November last year, a man in his 30s who stole a Chanel bag worth about 6 million KRW from a woman in her 20s he met for a secondhand transaction and fled on a motorcycle was also caught.
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