The government stated on the 3rd that it is "monitoring related trends" in response to reports that the local Korean community's anxiety is increasing due to the Trump administration's large-scale illegal immigrant crackdown policy in the United States.
An official from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said this to reporters on the same day in response to related questions. Regarding the arrest of Korean citizen A, who was convicted last month in Atlanta, USA, on charges of possessing child pornography, the official said, "We are aware of the situation and are providing necessary consular assistance."
Earlier, White House spokesperson Caroline Levitt said on the 31st of last month (local time), "The Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Atlanta arrested a Korean citizen who was convicted on charges including possession of materials explicitly depicting minors sexually."
The arrested individual, A, is a serious criminal. However, there is growing tension in the local Korean community over concerns that the crackdown could expand to Korean immigrants staying in the U.S. without legal residency status such as permanent residency, even if they have no prior criminal record.
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