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Samsung scion fined over illegal use of anesthetic

Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong / YonhapLee Jae-yong, the imprisoned de facto head of Samsung Group, was fined on Friday on charges of illegally taking propofol shots.The Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office slapped Lee with a 50 million won (US$44,800) fine in a summary indictment, which doesn't require a formal trial. Lee was accused of having excessively and illegally taken the anesthetic at a plastic surgery clinic in Seoul in 2017-2018. A complaint was filed against him with the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission in January 2020.The 52-year-old Samsung scion, who was jailed in January for embezzlement and bribery, has denied the allegation, arguing that he used propofol "normally" in accordance with a doctor's prescription. In March, a panel of civilian experts recommended that the state prosecution service halt its investigation into Lee's alleged propofol use. But the panel didn't reach a decision on whether Lee should be indicted, with its 14 members evenly split on the matter. (Yonhap)

Jun 4, 2021
Samsung scion fined over illegal use of anesthetic

Court opens door for father of Iranian refugee to gain same status

Iranian refugee Kim Min-hyuk, right, and his father speak during a press conference at Seoul Immigration Office in Yangcheon District in this Aug. 8, 2019, photo. Korea Times photo by Hong In-keeBy Nam Hyun-wooA 55-year-old Iranian man, whose son gained refugee status in Korea, is also expected to gain the same status following a court ruling Friday. The Seoul Administrative Court ruled in favor of the man, who sought the reversal of an order by the Seoul Immigration Office rejecting his application for refugee status. The man and his son arrived in Korea in 2010 with temporary stay permits and both became Catholics five years later. Muslims who convert to another religion are charged as criminals in Iran and face harsh punishment including possible execution.They applied for refugee status in May 2016, because they would face harsh punishment upon returning to Iran. But the Korea Immigration Service rejected their appeal, citing doubts about their Catholic faith.They filed a lawsuit to obtain refugee status, but lost. An appeals court also rejected their case, turning down their cla

Jun 4, 2021By Nam Hyun-woo
Court opens door for father of Iranian refugee to gain same status

Baby girl remains in coma a month after adoptive father's abuse

gettyimagesbankA 2-year-old girl has been in a coma for nearly a month since her adoptive father abused her to the point she fell unconscious with bleeding in her brain.Doctors say she is unlikely to wake up given the extent of the trauma she suffered when her father, 36, allegedly slapped her face and knocked her down a total of four times at their home in Hwaseong, about 40 kilometers south of Seoul, on May 8.An investigation revealed that the adoptive father had abused the girl multiple times prior to May 8, using his hands, a wooden back scratcher and a wooden shoehorn. The abuse finally came to light on May 8 when the man took the unconscious girl to a hospital and doctors discovered bruises in different stages of healing all over her body.On Thursday, the Suwon District Prosecutors Office indicted the man on charges of child abuse leading to grievous bodily harm and child abandonment and neglect. His 35-year-old wife, the girl's adoptive mother, was charged with child abandonment and neglect for allegedly being aware of her husband's actions but doing nothing to stop them.Child

Jun 4, 2021
Baby girl remains in coma a month after adoptive father's abuse

Man fined for entering women's locker room to find driver of illegally parked car

gettyimagesbankBy Bahk Eun-jiA man was fined for walking into the women's locker room of an indoor swimming pool to find a driver who had parked her car in a way that prevented him moving his car. The appellate department of Seoul Central District Court said it upheld a lower court ruling that slapped a 700,000 won ($628) fine on the 64-year-old man. He was accused of breaking into the women's locker room twice at a sports center in Gangnam District in Seoul, in January last year, although a pool manager tried to prevent him from doing so.The man entered the changing room to find a female member of the center as her vehicle was blocking his car as he was about to head to work after exercising at the gym. He remained at the entrance area for a couple of seconds.The man admitted all the charges at the lower court, was handed a light penalty, as the court said he did not look into the changing room from the entrance, because the lockers were blocking any view inside and the man did not appear to have any other purpose than to find the driver.However, the man denied the charges during th

Jun 4, 2021By Bahk Eun-ji
Man fined for entering women's locker room to find driver of illegally parked car

Ex-vice justice minister accused of bribing taxi driver to cover up assault case

Former Vice Justice Minister Lee Yong-gu appears to attack a taxi driver, in this Nov. 6 footage from a dashcam inside the taxi, recently obtained by local broadcaster SBS. Screenshot from SBS NewsBy Jung Da-min Former Vice Justice Minister Lee Yong-gu, who has been embroiled in controversy since his appointment over his alleged assault of a taxi driver, has again been caught up in another accusation, that he tried to cover up the assault by paying the driver off.The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency has found that Lee paid the driver 10 million won ($8,991) to ask him to delete a video recorded by the dashcam of the taxi, according to media reports, Wednesday.Lee issued a statement through his lawyer Thursday and admitted that he had met the driver two days after the incident. He had handed over the cash as settlement money but it was not meant to be a bribe to ensure the footage was deleted.“I thought it was a lot more than a normal settlement amount, but decided to give that amount of money (to the driver anyway), as I was a lawyer at the time, and was being mentioned as a ca

Jun 3, 2021
Ex-vice justice minister accused of bribing taxi driver to cover up assault case

Defense minister vows thorough probe into death of Air Force officer

Defense Minister Suh Wook meets the family of an Air Force officer, who died in an apparent suicide following alleged sexual assault by a colleague, at her funeral in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, June 2. YonhapDefense Minister Suh Wook on Wednesday met with the bereaved family members of an Air Force officer who died in an apparent suicide following alleged harassment by a colleague, pledging a transparent and thorough investigation into the case. Suh visited a military hospital in Seongnam, south of Seoul, where the body of the female master sergeant is laid amid mounting criticism that the military failed to protect the victim who was found dead last month. The bereaved family members claimed that her superiors attempted to cover up the sexual violence against her. "We will thoroughly look into the case so that there is no room left for any doubts," Suh told the parents of the late master sergeant, promising a "transparent" investigation.The ministry came under intense criticism after the bereaved family said the late master sergeant's superiors tried to persuade her to reach a set

Jun 2, 2021
Defense minister vows thorough probe into death of Air Force officer

Boy, 13, found dead after blackmail threats

gettyimagesbankBy Yoon Ja-youngA 13-year-old boy was found dead following an apparent blackmail threat connected to webcam phishing. According to the Incheon Metropolitan Police the middle school student's body was found in a flowerbed at the base of a 19-story apartment building in Incheon on May 31.The police are continuing the investigation after discovering circumstantial evidence that indicates the teenager was threatened by webcam phishing blackmailers in an anonymous chat room of a messenger app. The police are carrying out digital forensics on the boy's smartphone to uncover further details. Phishing scammers use fake identities and induce victims to take off their clothes or perform sexual acts in front of the webcam during a video chat. They then coerce victims to download malware under the guise of providing clear images, but it in fact steals the user's contact list from their smart device. Criminals then threaten to spread the footage to those in the victims' contact list unless they meet the blackmailers' demands. Last month, police imprisoned eight people from a ring b

Jun 1, 2021By Yoon Ja-young
Boy, 13, found dead after blackmail threats

Criminals using cryptocurrency for Ponzi style fraud

gettyimagesbank By Yoon Ja-youngAmid the virtual currency investment boom in Korea, cryptocurrency-related fraud cases have been increasing. The scammers, in many cases, lure investors with the promise of huge returns once their coins are listed on the exchange, but then disappear with the money, in a type of Ponzi scheme.The Gyeongnam Provincial Police said May 31 that it had detained two people from a ring that had swindled 63 investors out of 1.5 billion won ($1.3 million). The suspects had held presentations around the region starting in January 2017, telling potential investors ― falsely ― that global companies such as Amazon and Alibaba were jointly investing in their coin.They had claimed that the coin would jump more than five times in value once listed on an exchange. They also said that if an individual were to buy 30,000 coins, amounting to 10.8 million won ($9,700), that this person would receive 240 new coins every day. In this scheme, the suspects enco

Jun 1, 2021By Yoon Ja-young
Criminals using cryptocurrency for Ponzi style fraud

Air Force officer dies in suicide after being sexually harassed by colleague: officials

gettyimagesbankAn Air Force officer has died in an apparent suicide after being sexually harassed by a colleague, officials said Tuesday.In March, the female master sergeant stationed in the central city of Seosan was sexually harassed by the man surnamed Jang inside a car on their way back to the base after a private gathering that she was forced to attend, according to the officials.She then reported the case to the authorities the following day, but the military allegedly failed to take appropriate steps to protect the victim. Jang, as well as his family members and senior officers, had instead tried to cover up the case and persuade her to drop the complaint, according to the bereaved family members.After taking two months off, she was transferred to another base by her application, but she was found dead at her residence inside the base late last month."We feel heavy responsibility for failing to protect the victim," ministry spokesperson Boo Seung-chan said. "Defense Minister Suh Wook ordered to form a joint team with police and the prosecution and carry out an investigation th

Jun 1, 2021
Air Force officer dies in suicide after being sexually harassed by colleague: officials

US Forces Korea cooperating with police over servicemembers' no-mask parties

gettyimagesbankU.S. Forces Korea (USFK) said Monday it is cooperating with local authorities over allegations some of its members were involved in no-mask parties on a Busan beach over the weekend in violation of social distancing rules.According to police, around 2,000 foreigners, including U.S. soldiers, set off firecrackers and held parties without masks at Haeundae Beach in the southeastern city of Busan, marking U.S. Memorial Day. "USFK is aware of the alleged behavior at Haeundae Beach and is cooperating with the KNP ― who maintain jurisdiction of this investigation ― and local authorities to determine if USFK-affiliated individuals were involved," USFK spokesperson Col. Lee Peters said. KNP stands for the Korean National Police. Police received at least 38 reports of complaints from local residents overnight and dispatched dozens of officers to the scene. The incident took place as South Korea is still struggling to stem the spread of the new coronavirus with cluster infections and variant cases continuing across the country."USFK remains committed to being good neighbors with

May 31, 2021
US Forces Korea cooperating with police over servicemembers' no-mask parties
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