Ex-TV anchor gets suspended sentence for illicit filming of woman
Former SBS news anchor Kim Sung-joon / Korea Times file
A former anchor of a major TV station in South Korea received a suspended prison sentence from a Seoul court on Friday for secretly photographing a woman's body at a subway station a year ago.
The Seoul Southern District Court sentenced Kim Sung-joon, the former host of a primetime news show for SBS, to six months in prison, suspended for two years, and ordered him to complete 40 hours of sex offender treatment course, finding him guilty of illicit filming.
The 56-year-old Kim was indicted in December last year for secretly taking pictures of a woman's legs with his mobile phone at the Yeongdeungpo Ward Office subway station in southwestern Seoul, late at night on July 3.
The prosecution had demanded a one-year jail term for Kim last month.
Kim admitted to the criminal charges but argued that his right to participate in the evidence confiscation process was not guaranteed. He also claimed that the search and seizure process was illegal because evidence was collected beyond the scope of the warrant.
But the court dismissed his claim, saying all the evidence was legitimately secured by prosecutors.
Following the ruling, Kim offered his apology to the victim and those who have supported him in the past and said he will decide whether to appeal after consulting with his lawyer. (Yonhap)