South Korea - The Korea Times

Teenager in custody after stabbing death of grandma

The suspect said she killed her grandmother because she did not want to die alone. GettyimagesbankBy Lee Gyu-leeA teenager was taken into police custody after she allegedly killed her grandmother at her house in Gunpo, Gyeonggi Province, Monday. Police said the suspect, 19, allegedly stabbed the grandmother, 78, with a “sharp object” while she slept. The victim was visiting her house. The teenager's parents were out for the night. The suspect reportedly told police she killed her grandmother before attempting suicide because she did not want to die alone. She ran off when her suicide attempt failed. But police could not find any sign of the suicide attempt. They said the suspect bought the weapon and are looking at whether it is a case of premeditated murder.The girl's parents reported her when they found the body in the suspect's room after returning home about 10:20 a.m. She was caught four hours later.

Jun 4, 2019By Lee Gyu-lee

Teenager in custody after stabbing death of grandma

Ex-con nabbed sleeping with stolen designer bag

An ex-convict who spent two years in jail for theft was arrested on Monday for allegedly stealing an expensive bag and cash in Gwangju. GettyimagesbankBy Lee Gyu-leePolice arrested a man sleeping on the street on Monday in possession of an expensive designer bag and cash he allegedly stole from an unlocked car in western Gwangju. The suspect, 54, allegedly stole the 1.8 million won designer bag and 200,000 won from the car near a supermarket on Sunday. Police said the suspect is an ex-convict who was released last August after two years in jail for theft. He had been staying at motels and had no permanent residence.He is also facing three cases of theft since February involving stolen items worth over 2 million won, police said.

Jun 4, 2019By Lee Gyu-lee

Ex-con nabbed sleeping with stolen designer bag

Internet cafe murderer gets 30-year prison term

Kim Seong-soo, center, charged with murder of an employee at an internet cafe in Seoul's Gangnam-gu in October 2018, leaves Seoul Yangcheon Police Station and is escorted to the Seoul Southern District Prosecutor's Office, Nov. 21, 2018. YonhapA man was sentenced to 30 years in prison on Tuesday for killing a part-time worker at an internet cafe in Seoul in October last year.On Oct. 14, Kim Seong-soo, 30, mercilessly stabbed the part timer, surnamed Shin, about 80 times at the internet cafe in western Seoul when he asked Shin to clean his table. Kim insisted later that he had committed the homicide as Shin had been rude to him.The 20-year-old victim was taken to a hospital where he died of excessive blood loss, as arteries in his neck and arms were severed in the attack."The act of the accused was very vicious, and caused a social panic. The bereaved family of the victim is also pleading for a stern punishment," the Seoul Nambu District Court said in handing down the sentence.Kim's younger brother, who was at the scene, was acquitted for lack of evidence. Analyses of CCTV footage, in

Jun 4, 2019

Internet cafe murderer gets 30-year prison term

Former vice justice minister referred to trial on bribery charges

The director of the Ministry of Justice's special team of prosecutors debriefs an interim progress report of investigation on the former vice justice minister Kim Hak-ui at the Seoul Eastern District Prosecutors Office in Songpa-gu, Tuesday. Kim was charged with receiving bribes and sexual favors from a construction contractor. NewsisFormer Vice Justice Minister Kim Hak-ui was indicted and referred to trial Tuesday on charges of receiving bribes and sexual favors worth 170 million won (US$143,700) from a construction contractor.A special team of prosecutors, winding up months of a probe into Kim's suspected sexual assault a decade ago, announced the indictment of the 63-year-old who briefly held the No. 2 post at the Ministry of Justice in 2013.Kim is accused of receiving bribes and sexual favors worth 130 million won between January 2007 and February 2008, including money and valuables worth 31 million won, from a construction contractor named Yoon Jung-cheon.Prosecutors said Kim pressured Yoon to give up a debt of 100 million won from a woman surnamed Lee, who allegedly offered sex

Jun 4, 2019

Former vice justice minister referred to trial on bribery charges

Man strangles woman he had just met

Strangling victim's last text: “The man I came to the motel with is strange.” GettyimagesbankBy Lee Gyu-leePolice have arrested a man for allegedly strangling a woman at a motel in Osan, Gyeonggi Province, where they had checked in on Sunday. Osan police said the man, in his 30s, admitted killing the woman after police apprehended him at a highway rest area near the motel at 9:10 a.m. Monday. The woman's body ― showing clear signs of strangulation ― was found on Sunday night. The suspect reportedly told police he and the woman had met through a mobile chatting app. He claimed he killed the woman “in a fit of anger” provoked by an unexplained clash, police said. They did not give further details. Police said the pair checked in at the motel at 5:22 p.m. on Sunday. Shortly afterward, the victim texted her friend, “The man I came to the motel with is strange,” and gave the motel's location. The friend phoned police, who found the body at 8:37 p.m. Police will conduct an autopsy soon.

Jun 3, 2019By Lee Gyu-lee

'Stalked for rape': Fear grows among women living alone

Screen capture from the widely circulated CCTV footage of a man who tried to slip into a woman's apartment as she entered her home. / Captured from YouTubeWomen speak up on facing sexual assault on their doorstepsBy Lee Suh-yoonA viral video clip of a man trying to slip into a woman's home in Sillim-dong, Seoul, has sparked a flood of harrowing testimonies from Korean women, who say stalking and sexual assault by strangers is a real and widespread problem, especially for women who live alone. Some of them reached out to The Korea Times to share their accounts.“I have had several instances where drunk men have followed me to the front door. I literally had to run inside the building while keeping a male friend on the phone,” Kang Joo-eun, 25, a university student living in Sillim-dong, said, Friday. The video clip, tagged #failedrape, was first posted on Twitter on Tuesday afternoon, after the disturbing event was caught on a surveillance camera outside the woman's home early in the morning of the same day. In the footage, now shared over 58,000 times on Twitter, a young w

Jun 3, 2019

'Stalked for rape': Fear grows among women living alone

Half of women scared of strangers at night: survey

Travel agencies brace for boat tragedy backlash

A Hungarian sightseeing boat sails on the Danube River in Budapest, Sunday. It has been five days since a tourist boat carrying 35 passengers capsized after colliding with a larger vessel on the river. / YonhapBy Kim Jae-heunLocal travel agencies are searching for alternatives to their cruise programs in Europe in the wake of a sightseeing boat sinking in Hungary. On Wednesday, the boat carrying 33 Koreans on a package tour along with two Hungarian crewmembers, was involved in a collision with a larger vessel and sank in the Danube, leaving seven dead and 21 missing, according to the foreign ministry. The remaining seven were rescued.According to the agencies, many tourists have called to check on their river sightseeing bookings in Europe, with many people canceling.“Our agency has canceled all sightseeing boat programs in Hungary,” a Mode Tour official told The Korea Times, Sunday. “We have recommended two options to our customers ― either a walking sightseeing program or a dinner at a restaurant on a boat deck.“However, river sightseeing programs in other E

Jun 2, 2019By Kim Jae-heun

Travel agencies brace for boat tragedy backlash

Two jaywalkers hit, killed by SUV

Two people ― Lee, 52, and Choi, 48 ― were hit by an SUV and killed while crossing against a red light at an intersection in Icheon, Gyeonggi Province, Thursday. Gettyimagesbank By Lee Gyu-leeTwo people were hit by an SUV and killed while walking across a crosswalk against a red light at an intersection in Icheon, sortheastern Gyeonggi Province, Thursday. According to police, Friday, the SUV hit the two pedestrians ― Lee, 52, and Choi, 48 ― before crossing the median line and colliding with a bus in the opposite lane at around 9 p.mBoth the SUV driver and the bus driver sustained minor injuries. “It seems that the SUV driver went across the zebra crossing on a green light and did not see the two crossing the intersection,” a policeman told local news outlet News1.The SUV driver was booked without physical detention, while the police were planning to examine footage from surveillance cameras inside the bus and SUV.

Jun 1, 2019By Lee Gyu-lee

Psy denies involvement in YG scandal

Singer Psy has denied any involvement in the recent scandal surrounding Yang hyun-suk, the head of his former agency, YG Entertainment. / Courtesy of YG EntertainmentBy Kim Jae-heunSinger Psy has denied any involvement in the recent scandal surrounding Yang hyun-suk, the head of his former agency, YG Entertainment. Yang who is alleged to have procured prostitutes for two foreign investors from Southeast Asia in 2014, claimed Psy introduced one of the two men to him.The man is Malaysian fugitive financier, Low Taek Jho, known as Jho Low, an acquaintance of former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak. He is currently on Interpol's red list and is wanted by the authorities in Malaysia and the United States for allegedly pocketing billions of dollars from a state-run development company.Via social media, Wednesday, Psy admitted that Jho Low was his friend.“I met him when I was performing overseas and he was active in Hollywood. I introduced him to Yang. Whether he is a good man or not, it is a fact that he was a friend of mine,” he wrote.“When he and his acquaintances c

May 30, 2019By Kim Jae-heun

Dermatologist duo helps delinquents' do-over

Timeless Dermatology director Dr. Shin Won-ung, left, and Dr. Lee Kyung-goo / Courtesy of Timeless DermatologyBy Jhoo Dong-chanTimeless Dermatology co-directors Shin Won-ung and Lee Kyung-goo may look like typical doctors operating a dermatology clinic in the affluent Gangnam area, but they are differentiating themselves in a very special way.Apart from their daily routine of treating skin diseases and providing skincare services, the dermatologist duo is also donating their talent to society by removing tattoos from juvenile delinquents' bodies.“Some kids just have a rough adolescence and make decisions they regret. An increasing number of Korean people have started getting tattoos these days, but there are still negative perceptions about them, especially toward teenagers' tattoos,” Shin said.“Some kids want to have a chance for a do-over. But it's hard, especially for a young kid, to do it with such negative perceptions toward them. We just want to help them.”Lee said he first met a number of juvenile delinquents when he served his military duty at the Gimc

May 30, 2019By Jhoo Dong-chan

Law & Crime