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CEO & Publisher: Oh Young-jinDigital News Email: webmaster@koreatimes.co.krTel: 02-724-2114Online newspaper registration No: 서울,아52844Date of registration: 2020.02.05Masthead: The Korea TimesCopyright © koreatimes.co.kr. All rights reserved.

Court sentences 'Captain America' man to 1.5 years in prison for storming Chinese Embassy

A Seoul court on Wednesday sentenced a man believed to be a supporter of former President Yoon Suk Yeol to 1 1/2 years in prison for attempting to trespass into the Chinese Embassy. On Feb. 14, the 40-something man, surnamed Ahn, attempted to rush through the gate of the Chinese Embassy in central Seoul without permission, while dressed as the Marvel Comics character Captain America. Days later, he broke the glass of the Seoul Namdaemun Police Station while demanding he be questioned quickly, swore at a police officer and presented a fake U.S. military ID. The Seoul Central District Court convicted him of attempted trespassing, damaging public property and insult. "The defendant committed the crimes with the intention of focusing the public's attention to achieve his personal and political goals," the court said. Prosecutors had earlier demanded a 3-year prison term for Ahn.

May 28, 2025By Yonhap
Court sentences 'Captain America' man to 1.5 years in prison for storming Chinese Embassy

Courthouse rioter given 1-year prison term

A man in his 40s was sentenced to one year in prison Wednesday on charges of violence during a courthouse riot related to former President Yoon Suk Yeol in January. The Seoul Western District Court handed down the sentence to the 41-year-old man, surnamed Cho, for trespassing at the same court building and breaking its windows during the riot on Jan. 19. A total of 63 people have been indicted in connection with the riot, which was prompted by the court's decision to extend Yoon's detention over his Dec. 3 declaration of martial law. The same court also sentenced a 37-year-old man, surnamed Park, to a one-year imprisonment, suspended for two years, on charges of assaulting a reporter of broadcaster MBC during the riot. The prosecution earlier demanded two years in prison for both Cho and Park.

May 28, 2025By Yonhap
Courthouse rioter given 1-year prison term

DPK candidate Lee's lawyer denies all charges in trial over misusing public funds

Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung's lawyer on Tuesday denied all charges related to allegations that Lee misused public funds for personal purposes during his term as the governor of Gyeonggi province. The attorney's denial came during the third preparatory hearing of Lee's trial at the Suwon District Court, which the candidate did not attend. Lee is accused of using 106.5 million won ($77,800) from his corporate card and provincial government funds to pay for food and other goods while serving as governor from 2018 to 2021. "The defendant has not colluded in the crime, nor did he give orders (to do so)," Lee's lawyer said, claiming the indictment was "illegal" as the police had previously decided to not transfer the case to the prosecution. Prosecutors have also indicted Lee's former chief of staff and a former public servant on the same charges. The court, which had initially planned to wrap up preparatory hearings Tuesday, said it will hold an additional hearing July 1 following a request from Lee's lawyer. Lee has denounced the indictment, saying the

May 27, 2025By Yonhap
DPK candidate Lee's lawyer denies all charges in trial over misusing public funds

Ex-PM Han, ex-DPM Choi slapped with exit ban in martial law probe

Former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo and former Deputy Prime Minister Choi Sang-mok have been banned from leaving the country as suspects in the alleged insurrection case related to former President Yoon Suk Yeol's botched martial law attempt, police said Tuesday. The exit ban was reportedly imposed on Han and Choi around the middle of this month. The police's special investigation unit handling the high-profile case called in Han, Choi and former Interior Minister Lee Sang-min on Monday for questioning for about 10 hours about their alleged involvement in Yoon's martial law declaration on Dec. 3 last year. An exit ban on Lee, which was imposed in December, has also been extended. The former ministers were reportedly grilled about whether they made false statements about the process of receiving martial law-related documents during a Cabinet meeting convened by Yoon on the night of Dec. 3, as police have completed an analysis of surveillance footage of the presidential office's Cabinet meeting room and hallway. Han has denied his charges, saying in February that he only realized he had bee

May 27, 2025By Yonhap
Ex-PM Han, ex-DPM Choi slapped with exit ban in martial law probe

Police to transfer suspect in killing of 2 brothers to prosecution

Police said Tuesday they plan to transfer the suspect in the killing of two brothers and stabbing of two other people to the prosecution on charges of murder and attempted murder. Cha Cheol-nam, a 56-year-old Chinese national of Korean ethnicity, was apprehended on Monday last week, two days after he allegedly killed the brothers of the same Chinese-Korean background in Siheung, just southwest of Seoul. Hours before his detention, he also stabbed a convenience store owner and his landlord in separate incidents, causing them serious injuries. A Siheung police official told reporters Tuesday that Cha was found to have planned the murders starting early this month by purchasing weapons. A police investigation also found that Cha lured the elder brother to his home to have a drink and killed him first, before killing the younger sibling. An autopsy of the bodies tentatively concluded that both victims died of head injuries. Police said Cha claimed to have committed the crime out of anger after the brothers failed to repay him a loan of 30 million won ($21,500). Before stabbing the convenience s

May 27, 2025By Yonhap
Police to transfer suspect in killing of 2 brothers to prosecution

Police detect signs of records of Yoon Suk Yeol's secure phone being deleted after martial law

Police have detected signs of some call records of a secure phone held by former President Yoon Suk Yeol being remotely deleted, just days after his failed martial law attempt, an official said Monday. The records of Yoon's calls with Hong Jang-won, former first deputy director of the National Intelligence Service, and Kim Bong-sik, former chief of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, were deleted on Dec. 6, three days after Yoon's martial law declaration, according to the official at the police's special investigation team. Police have since launched an investigation on charges of destruction of evidence but have yet to narrow down a suspect. A police official said the Presidential Security Service (PSS) is believed to have deleted the records but noted they were looking into who made the instruction for their deletion. Police detected the signs during their analysis of secure phone server records submitted by the PSS as part of an investigation into allegations that PSS officials blocked investigators from executing a detention warrant against Yoon in January. Police have secured 19 ph

May 26, 2025By Yonhap
Police detect signs of records of Yoon Suk Yeol's secure phone being deleted after martial law

Court to hold 1st preparatory hearing of ex-President Moon's trial in June

A Seoul court will hold the first preparatory hearing of former President Moon Jae-in's bribery trial next month, legal sources said Monday. Moon was indicted last month on charges of receiving bribes in the form of a salary and other payments worth over 200 million won ($146,537) for his then son-in-law, surnamed Seo, from Thailand-based budget carrier Thai Eastar Jet. The preparatory hearing has been scheduled for 2 p.m. on June 17 at the Seoul Central District Court, the sources said. Seo was appointed executive director at the airline in 2018 after the company's founder and former two-term lawmaker Lee Sang-jik was appointed head of the Korea SMEs and Startups Agency. Prosecutors suspect that Lee's appointment was made in exchange for hiring Seo at the airline, particularly given Seo's lack of experience in the airline industry at the time. During a preliminary hearing, the court typically verifies the defendant's position and plans for future proceedings. Unlike the main trial, the defendant is not required to attend.

May 26, 2025By Yonhap
Court to hold 1st preparatory hearing of ex-President Moon's trial in June

DPK pauses contentious court overhaul bid — for now

The liberal Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) has decided to withdraw a set of controversial legislative bills that sought sweeping changes to the justice system, following criticism that the proposals threatened judicial independence. The party announced its decision on Monday — the same day court representatives from across the country convened to address growing concerns over the judiciary’s independence and integrity. Of the 126 court representatives, 88 attended the meeting, where they discussed the fallout from the Supreme Court’s May 1 ruling, which overturned a lower court’s acquittal of DPK presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung on charges of violating the election law. The verdict triggered a strong backlash from DPK lawmakers, raising concerns about political pressure on the courts. The DPK’s swift withdrawal of the bills, coming just before the rare gathering of judiciary representatives, appears aimed at easing immediate tensions. However, the judges' decision not to release a public statement underscores persistent anxieties within the legal community, suggesting th

May 26, 2025By Jung Min-ho
DPK pauses contentious court overhaul bid — for now
  • 30 on the bench? DPK eyes radical Supreme Court expansion plan

Seoul mayor questioned by prosecutors Sunday on corruption allegations

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon has appeared before prosecutors earlier this week to be questioned about allegations of corruption surrounding his ties with self-proclaimed power broker Myung Tae-kyun, his aide said Monday. Oh underwent questioning by prosecutors at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors Office on Sunday to cooperate with their investigation into the Myung case, according to Lee Jong-hyun, a mayoral public communications aide. The questioning began at 9:30 a.m. and ended at 9:30 p.m., Lee said, expressing hope that it will serve as an opportunity to correct falsehoods, exaggerations and distortions. Prosecutors' questioning of Oh came after their raid on his office and residence in late March. The prosecution has been looking into the suspicion that Kim Han-jung, a businessman known to be a supporter of Oh, asked the Future Korea Research Institute, a polling company effectively operated by Myung, to conduct 13 unpublished opinion polls during the 2021 Seoul mayoral by-election campaign and paid 33 million won ($22,650) in polling costs on behalf of the Seoul mayor.

May 26, 2025By Yonhap
Seoul mayor questioned by prosecutors Sunday on corruption allegations

Prosecutors redeem 123.8 bil. won in criminal proceeds over technology leaks

Prosecutors have retrieved over 100 billion won ($73.1 million) in criminal proceeds related to technology leaks and indicted 73 people on related charges in the past three years, officials said Sunday. The Supreme Prosecutors Office (SPO) said the prosecution had booked 226 people on charges of stealing the country's core technologies and redeemed roughly 123.8 billion won in criminal proceeds between September 2022 and this month. The findings came after the SPO launched an investigation support center for technology leaks in 2022 to better respond to the growing number of such crimes involving the nation's core technology leaks in the semiconductor and secondary battery sectors. Authorities also pushed to increase the Supreme Court's sentencing guidelines on related charges, effectively prompting the top court to advise raising the punishment for such crimes in March 2024 to a maximum prison sentence of 18 years. In response to these measures, the proportion of suspects being detained or defendants receiving prison terms for such crimes has increased, officials said. "Technology leak c

May 25, 2025By Yonhap
Prosecutors redeem 123.8 bil. won in criminal proceeds over technology leaks
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