"Rip Your Mouth Wide Open" Verbal Abuse and False Sexual Harassment Allegations... Principal of A High School in Jeonnam Under Suspicion

Suspicions of Fraudulent Use of Business Travel Expenses, Card-Kang, and Budget Embezzlement
Principal Avoids Interviews, Saying "I'm too busy to take calls"

Allegations have been raised that the principal of a high school in Yeongam, Jeonnam, repeatedly verbally abused the administrative director and spread false information related to sexual harassment. In addition, suspicions of fraudulent use of business travel expenses and so-called 'card-kang' (credit card kickback) have surfaced, further fueling the controversy.

According to Mr. B, the administrative director of the school, on December 23, the principal of A High School habitually made insulting remarks to Mr. B, using expressions such as "thief business trip" and "thief overtime."

A principal of a high school in Yeongam, Jeonnam, is accused of repeatedly verbally abusing the administrative director and spreading false information related to sexual harassment.

On November 27, the principal allegedly made multiple violent and threatening statements in a publicly accessible area of the school, including "I’ll rip your mouth wide open" and "Get out, I don’t want to hear you." Mr. B also claimed that the principal repeatedly pressured him to transfer to another position and hinted at possible personnel disadvantages by saying, "I won’t be able to give you high performance evaluation scores in the future."

Suspicions have also been raised regarding the spreading of false information related to sexual harassment. According to Mr. B, on April 24, during a farewell party for personnel transfers at a sashimi restaurant in Nohwado, Wando, the principal repeatedly told several staff members that "Director B tried to hug me after drinking."

In response, Mr. B denied the allegations, stating, "I never committed any sexual harassment," and added, "There were several staff members present, including a temporary teacher who did not drink alcohol, and all attendees confirmed that no such incident occurred."

Separately, suspicions of fraudulent use of business travel expenses by the principal have also been raised. Mr. B claimed, "Over the past nine months, the principal made over 100 business trips, repeatedly submitting false travel claims and making inappropriate expenditures. The actual travel expenses amounted to only 320,000 won, but the amount to be recovered was 1,620,000 won."

There were also claims that, during a visit to a middle school in Muan to recruit new students, the actual meal cost was 100,000 won, but 200,000 won was charged, raising suspicions of so-called 'card-kang' (credit card kickback).

In addition, suspicions were raised that the principal was involved in an envelope money incident during the execution of budgets, including an 800,000 won advance payment for student snacks, about 4,600,000 won for an AI competency enhancement project, and a total of 10,000,000 won for reading and humanities education projects. However, it is known that the parties reported to the provincial office of education and the police in relation to these matters were not the principal but external vendors.

Mr. B claimed, "When the issues were raised, the principal sent an official letter in his own name on July 2, stating that 'the vendor provided snacks for students and staff out of goodwill,' in an attempt to cover up the situation."

He further emphasized, "Since the bakery near the school is operated together with a tea house and the principal and others frequently visited to purchase tea and bread, it is difficult to believe that the purchases were solely for student snacks."

The audit office of the Jeonnam Provincial Office of Education conducted an audit after receiving a public complaint at the end of September, which was then reported to the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission. An official from the provincial office of education stated, "We requested personnel measures appropriate to the severity of the case according to the manual."

Meanwhile, the principal of A High School did not respond to multiple attempts by reporters to contact him. When a call was finally made, the principal said, "I am busy right now, I will call you later," but has not responded since.