"Strict Punishment Needed...
Private Sanctions Undermine the Foundation of the Rule of Law"
A YouTuber in his 30s has been sentenced to prison for unlawfully disclosing the identities of perpetrators involved in a group sexual assault case that occurred in Miryang, South Gyeongsang Province, about 20 years ago.
On May 23, the Changwon District Court Criminal Division 4 (Presiding Judge Kim Song) sentenced a YouTuber in his 30s, identified as A, who operates the "Jeontu Tokki" channel, to two years and six months in prison for charges including defamation under the Act on Promotion of Information and Communications Network Utilization. The court also ordered the forfeiture of 7,823,256 won.
B, A's wife and a civil servant in her 30s who worked for a local government in North Chungcheong Province, was also sentenced to two years in prison, suspended for three years, for charges including violation of the Personal Information Protection Act.
A was charged with unlawfully disclosing the personal information of the Miryang sexual assault case perpetrators, which he had obtained from his wife, on his YouTube channel "Jeontu Tokki" between June and July last year. He was also indicted and detained for threatening to disclose the personal information of certain victims' families unless those victims sent him apology videos.
B was indicted for illegally accessing and providing to her husband A the personal information of dozens of individuals, including perpetrators of the sexual assault case?such as resident registration numbers and addresses?while working as a civil servant for a local government in North Chungcheong Province during the same period.
The court stated, "Identifying perpetrators and imposing private sanctions based on information circulating online, without going through objective and fair legal procedures, is an act that threatens the very foundation of our rule of law and can never be tolerated."
The court continued, "A significant number of the victims in this case had no connection to the Miryang sexual assault case, yet their personal information was disclosed, leading to their social and economic ostracization. In order to present clear standards and perspectives for similar cases in the future, a firm and severe punishment is unavoidable."
However, the court explained the sentencing by noting, "Although their actions can never be justified, the lack of sufficient investigation and accountability regarding the 2004 Miryang sexual assault case, as well as the fact that neither had any prior criminal record, were taken into consideration."
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