The Words Spoken by the Perpetrator in Court in the Case of Workplace Harassment That Led to the Death of a 25-Year-Old Young Man

First Trial: 2 Years and 6 Months Imprisonment, Second Trial Verdict Next Month

The perpetrator of ‘workplace bullying’ that drove a 25-year-old young man to death pleaded for leniency in the appellate trial.

According to Yonhap News on the 13th, at the appellate trial sentencing hearing held at the Chuncheon District Court Gangneung Branch Criminal Division 1 (Chief Judge Kwon Sang-pyo), A (41), who was indicted on charges of threats, assault, and violation of the Information and Communications Network Act, said, "I acknowledge my wrongdoings and sincerely repent," the report stated.

The late Jeon Young-jin during his lifetime [Photo courtesy of family/ Yonhap News]

A’s lawyer argued, “During the investigation and the first trial, we did not dispute and fully acknowledged the cause of the victim’s death, but according to the fact-finding inquiry, it was confirmed that the victim had multiple missing person reports filed due to family conflicts between 2021 and 2022,” adding, “It seems there were other factors involved in the victim’s death.”

At the first appellate trial held in May, A’s side also defended that "the circumstances leading to Mr. Jeon’s death cannot be solely attributed to Mr. A."

On the other hand, the prosecution requested the court to dismiss A’s appeal and uphold the first trial’s sentence of 2 years and 6 months imprisonment. The prosecution criticized, "Circumstantial evidence suggests the victim was habitually assaulted, and the victim died due to workplace power harassment, with the bereaved family petitioning for severe punishment," adding, "The verbal abuse and threats against the defendant are not minor, and even during the ongoing appellate trial, the defendant has acted as if trying to blame the victim for the cause of death, showing no remorse."

A has been accused of verbally abusing and threatening (16 times) and assaulting (4 times) the victim, the late Jeon Young-jin, 86 times by phone since March last year. He reportedly repeatedly used abusive language such as, "You XXXX XX, I’ll really kill you," "Saying sorry doesn’t fix anything, you XXX," "Do you want to start the day getting beaten every morning?" "Even if you have no sense, there’s a limit," and "When you come tomorrow morning, you’ll get twelve hits with a bat."

Unable to endure A’s bullying, Jeon took his own life on May 23 last year. The auto parts company in Sokcho City where Jeon worked was a small company with fewer than five employees. A, who had about 20 years of experience and met Jeon there, was Jeon’s first workplace supervisor.

Previously, the first trial court sentenced A to 2 years and 6 months in prison and ordered his detention in court. The court stated, "The defendant repeatedly assaulted, verbally abused, and threatened the victim. The victim, unable to endure the torment, ended his life at a young age," and ruled, "This case is an extreme example of workplace bullying." The appellate trial sentencing hearing will be held on September 5 at the Chuncheon District Court Gangneung Branch.