South Korea - The Korea Times

Actor Yoo Ah-in tests positive for marijuana use

Yoo Ah-in /Courtesy of NetflixActor Yoo Ah-in has tested positive for marijuana after undergoing a drug test as part of a probe into his alleged illegal use of an anesthetic medication, police officials said Friday.Police sent his hair and urine samples to the National Forensic Service for testing Sunday when he arrived here from the United States over his alleged use of propofol for non-medical purposes.His urine sample came back positive for cannabis, classified as an illegal drug here, while results from his hair sample have not yet been released, according to the officials.Police officials view that Yoo has taken propofol in numerous hospitals since 2021 based on an investigation request by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency's drug investigation unit questioned Yoo on Monday.They raided multiple clinics and hospitals, including those that specialize in plastic surgery, in the southern ward of Gangnam and the central ward of Yongsan on Wednesday and Thursday to seize medical records for evidence.Yoo's agency vowed to cooperate with the ongoi

Feb 10, 2023

Actor Yoo Ah-in tests positive for marijuana use

Police arrest stepmother, father over fatal abuse of son

The stepmother and biological father of a 12-year-old child who was allegedly abused to death by them arrive at Incheon District Court in Incheon, 40 kilometers west of Seoul, to attend a court hearing to decide whether to issue an arrest warrant for them, Feb. 10. YonhapPolice on Friday arrested a stepmother and a father for allegedly abusing their 12-year-old son to death, with a court-issued warrant. The stepmother was charged with child abuse homicide, while the father was accused of habitual child abuse and other charges, the Incheon Metropolitan Police Agency said.Earlier in the day, the Incheon District Court issued an arrest warrant for the couple, citing fear they might flee or destroy evidence.The child, a fifth grader, died at a hospital Tuesday after being found unconscious with what appeared to be bruises all over his body at their home in Incheon, 27 kilometers west of Seoul. The 43-year-old stepmother and her 40-year-old husband, the biological father of the deceased child, were apprehended on the same day on charges of aggravated child abuse resulting in the death of

Feb 10, 2023

Police arrest stepmother, father over fatal abuse of son

SNU begins discussions on disciplining convicted ex-justice minister

Former Justice Minister Cho Kuk answers reporters' questions in front of the Seoul Central District Court, Friday, after being sentenced to two years in prison for academic fraud and other charges. Korea Times photo by Lee Han-ho By Jun Ji-hyeSeoul National University has decided to begin procedures to take disciplinary action against Cho Kuk, a former justice minister and close aide of former President Moon Jae-in, after he was convicted of academic fraud and other charges at a district court last week, university officials said Wednesday.Cho used to teach law at the university until he was appointed as senior presidential secretary for civil affairs upon the inauguration of the Moon administration. “We will resume relevant procedures following the court ruling,” a university official said. “After reviewing the ruling, a disciplinary committee will hold its meeting.”The Seoul Central District Court sentenced the former minister to two years in prison last Friday on

Feb 8, 2023By Jun Ji-hye

SNU begins discussions on disciplining convicted ex-justice minister

Ex-justice minister, daughter blamed for unrepentant attitude over academic fraud

Former Justice Minister Cho Kuk leaves the Seoul Central District Court, Friday, after being sentenced to a two-year prison term for academic fraud and other charges. Korea Times photo by Lee Han-hoBy Jun Ji-hyeFormer Justice Minister Cho Kuk and his daughter Cho Min have been facing criticism over their unrepentant attitude toward the high-profile corruption scandal involving their family. According to legal sources, Tuesday, the Seoul Central District Court reprimanded Cho Kuk while sentencing him to two years in prison last Friday, saying he has never reflected on his wrongdoings.The former minister, who was indicted in 2019, was found guilty of multiple charges, including using his influence to help his two children gain entry into universities and graduate schools. The court, however, did not immediately incarcerate him, citing escape was not a concern. “Cho Kuk has continued to argue against objective evidence even after he stood before this court,” the court said in its ruling. “He has continued to turn a blind eye to his wrongdoings and never reflected on th

Feb 7, 2023By Jun Ji-hye

Ex-justice minister, daughter blamed for unrepentant attitude over academic fraud

Acquittal upheld for ex-coast guard chief over botched rescue activities in Sewol ferry sinking

Kim Suk-kyoon, a former chief of the Korea Coast Guard, arrives at the Seoul High Court, Feb. 7. YonhapAn appeals court on Tuesday upheld the acquittal of a former maritime police chief charged with failing to carry out his duty in the rescue operation of the sinking of the Sewol ferry in 2014.The Seoul High Court again found Kim Suk-kyoon, then chief of the Korea Coast Guard, not guilty of charges, including professional negligence, in the disaster that killed 303 people, mostly high school students.In the same ruling, the court upheld the acquittal of nine others, who were in key posts of the organization at that time, of the same charges.The court also upheld suspended prison terms handed down to two former ranking maritime police officers for fabricating documents related to the case.In one of the country's worst disasters, the ferry sank off the southwestern coast on April 16, 2014, along with 250 high school kids and 11 teachers, who were traveling to the southern resort island of Jeju on a school field trip. (Yonhap)

Feb 7, 2023

Acquittal upheld for ex-coast guard chief over botched rescue activities in Sewol ferry sinking

Man sentenced to 40 years in prison for revenge murder at subway station

Jeon Joo-hwan, the suspect in the murder of a female Seoul Metro employee at Sindang Station shows up for a court hearing at the Seoul Central District Office in this Sept. 16, 2022 file photo. Korea Times fileA Seoul court on Tuesday sentenced a former subway worker to 40 years in prison for killing a female colleague he had stalked in a public restroom at a subway station.The man, Jeon Joo-hwan, was found guilty of revenge killing and other charges for stabbing the victim to death in the ladies' room at Sindang Station in Seoul on Sept. 14. The Seoul Central District Court also ordered him to wear an electronic tracking device for 15 years.The prosecution had demanded a death sentence. The killing took place one day before a court was set to sentence him on charges of stalking her. The two had known each other since they began to work for Seoul Metro, the operator of Seoul's subway system, in October 2021.Jeon told police he committed the murder out of resentment toward her after prosecutors demanded a nine-year prison sentence for him in the stalking case in August. In late Septem

Feb 7, 2023

Man sentenced to 40 years in prison for revenge murder at subway station

Debate heats up over chemical castration of more sex offenders

Kim Geun-sik / Korea Times fileBy Jun Ji-hyeWhether chemical castration should be ordered as punishment on more child sex offenders is emerging as a key issue in legal circles, after the prosecution recently requested a court to order such a penalty for serial rapist Kim Geun-sik.These discussions reflect long-standing concerns that punishment ordered on child sex offenders in the past did not match their brutal crimes and that existing systems to monitor released offenders have insufficiently reduced repeat offenses.Chemical castration involves administering medication ― either via injection or tablets ― to repress sexual interest.The related law came into effect in 2011 in Korea amid public outcry over a series of child rapists reoffending following their release.Kim had served 15 years in prison for raping 11 minors in Seoul and its surrounding areas from May to September of 2006. The 55-year-old was supposed to be released from prison in October last year. Just before his release, Kim was arrested again. Investigators found that he was the assailant in an unsolved case in which a

Feb 6, 2023By Jun Ji-hye

Debate heats up over chemical castration of more sex offenders

Ex-justice minister gets 2-year prison term for academic irregularities surrounding family

Former Justice Minister Cho Kuk arrives at the Seoul Central District Court in southern Seoul on Jan. 2. YonhapFormer Justice Minister Cho Kuk was sentenced to two years in prison on Friday for using his influence to receive academic favors, including university admissions, for his children.The Seoul Central District Court also found Cho guilty of interfering with an inspection into a corruption case by using his power as a presidential aide.The court, however, did not immediately lock up the former minister who served under the previous Moon Jae-in administration.Cho was indicted in 2019 on a dozen charges, including fabricating various documents to help his two children get into universities and graduate schools, including a medical school.The former minister was also charged with receiving bribes worth 6 million won ($4,900) in the form of a scholarship for his daughter, who attended a medical school in the southeastern city of Busan. He was indicted again on charges of using his power as a presidential aide to end an inspection into bribery allegations involving a former Busan vi

Feb 3, 2023

Ex-justice minister gets 2-year prison term for academic irregularities surrounding family

Police to introduce new measures to better handle intoxicated people

National Police Agency Commissioner General Yoon Hee-keun speaks to reporters during his visit to Dongdaemun Police Station in Seoul on Wednesday afternoon. YonhapBy Lee Hyo-jin The police have vowed to introduce better measures to handle intoxicated members of the public on streets, following criticisms over their poor response which has recently led to a series of deaths.At about 8:10 p.m., Jan. 19, Dongdaemun Police Station in Seoul received a report that a drunk man in his 50s was sleeping on the street. Two officers were deployed on-site, but after a failed attempt to wake him up ― which lasted for about six minutes ― they left him lying on the street without taking additional measures.About 40 minutes later, the man was struck by a van. He was pronounced dead while being transferred to a nearby hospital. CCTV footage showed that at the time of the incident, the officers were sitting in their car across the street. The officers are currently under internal investigation over their handling of the intoxicated individual.On Nov. 30 of last year, two police officers in Gangbuk Dist

Feb 2, 2023By Lee Hyo-jin

Police to introduce new measures to better handle intoxicated people

Woman in mysterious child death case given suspended prison term by appeals court

A Gumi woman, surnamed Seok, leaves the Gimcheon branch of the Daegu District Court in Gimcheon, southeastern Korea, after attending a hearing in a case involving the deaths of two girls, in this Aug. 17, 2021, file photo. Yonhap A woman was given a suspended prison term in an appeal hearing Thursday, after previously being found guilty in a trial over the mysterious disappearance and deaths of two 3-year-old girls.Reducing an earlier prison term of eight years, the appellate division of the Daegu District Court sentenced the 50-year-old woman, surnamed Seok, to two years in prison, suspended for three years.The court also reversed the guilty ruling that stated Seok had switched her 3-year-old daughter with her granddaughter of the same age years ago in the southeastern city of Gumi. The case first surfaced in 2021 when the mummified remains of a 3-year-old girl were found at the former home of Seok's daughter, surnamed Kim. The girl was suspected of having died fro

Feb 2, 2023

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