Sentenced to Six and Eight Months in Prison with Two Years’ Probation
Falsely Registered as Housing-Vulnerable to Obtain Public Rental Housing
Those who falsely met the criteria for housing-vulnerable groups by disguising their residence in goshi-tels and other means and contracted public rental housing were sentenced to imprisonment and probation.
On the 29th, Yonhap News reported that Judge Jeong Jae-wook of the Suwon District Court Criminal Division 4 sentenced nine people in their 60s, including Mr. A, who were indicted on charges of fraud and violation of the Public Housing Special Act, to six months and eight months in prison with two years of probation, respectively. Mr. B, in his 50s, who was indicted on the same charges, was fined 600,000 won.
Seoul Yongsan-gu Hannam 4 District area. (This photo is not directly related to the article.) Photo by Yonhap News
Mr. A and others were brought to trial on charges of illegally contracting public rental housing from 2018 to 2022. Currently, the Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) operates a public rental housing project that signs jeonse contracts targeting 'housing-vulnerable groups' and subleases them at affordable rates.
Housing-vulnerable groups refer to people who have lived for more than three months in places such as jjokbang (tiny rooms), goshiwons, inns, vinyl greenhouses, homeless shelters, and those living with children under 18 years old in housing environments below the minimum housing standards, recognized by the local mayor, county governor, or district head as needing housing support.
At the time, it was investigated that Mr. A and others falsely registered their residence in goshi-tels and other places after sending money following Mr. C's proposal, "If you pay a 2 million won work fee, I will get you an LH jeonse rental house."
Judge Jeong stated, "The crime in this case resulted in depriving legitimate applicants who met the requirements to actually reside in public rental housing of their opportunity, and the culpability is not light."
He added, "All defendants confessed to the crime, it does not appear that they committed the crime with definite intent, and most seem to be in difficult economic circumstances, which were considered favorable factors. In Mr. B's case, the fact that he did not take procedures to sublease public rental housing was also taken into account," explaining the sentencing reasons.
Meanwhile, the government will announce improvement measures for the no-preference subscription system, which has been criticized for overheating the subscription market with competition rates reaching up to millions to one, in February. A plan to restrict subscription eligibility to those without housing is likely. Additionally, the Youth Dream Loan, which provides loans up to 80% of the sale price at low interest rates, will be launched in the first half of this year, and candidates for new housing sites in the metropolitan area with a scale of 30,000 households will also be announced.
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