"Throwing Away Food Waste Without Stickers"... Sanitation Workers Who Collected 75 Million Won Sent to Prosecution

Three sanitation workers were handed over to the prosecution for pocketing 75 million won over four years in exchange for disposing of food waste without the payment certificate 'sticker.'

Food waste with stickers indicating a lower amount than the actual emission is being discarded. Photo by Seongdong Police Station

On the 8th, the Seongdong Police Station in Seoul announced that it had sent three sanitation workers belonging to a service company and 22 business owners who made illicit requests to the prosecution on charges of embezzlement and breach of trust.

The sanitation workers are accused of colluding with merchants and business owners subject to food waste disposal in the Seongdong-gu area of Seoul from April 2019 to August last year, agreeing to collect waste even if stickers were not attached or stickers with amounts less than the actual disposal volume were attached, and pocketing money. It was confirmed that they received a total of 75.03 million won in cash and bank transfers, ranging from 20,000 won to 800,000 won per month, over a period of more than four years.

Usually, when businesses such as restaurants dispose of food waste, they purchase payment certificate stickers and attach them to food waste bins as a method of disposal. If sanitation workers embezzle processing fees as in this case, the district office's tax revenue related to 'payment certificate sales income' decreases, causing indirect harm to residents.

The police plan to investigate whether there have been any past incidents of abnormal waste disposal and acceptance of bribes. A police official said, "Since institutional loopholes have been identified where illegal activities during the food waste collection and processing process are not easily detected, it is necessary to consider improving the work process."