South Korea - The Korea Times

Former KT executive arrested for helping lawmaker's daughter get full-time job

A former KT executive has been arrested for allegedly giving favors to a lawmaker's daughter so she could get a full-time position at the company. YonhapBy Jung Min-hoA former executive at KT, Korea's second largest mobile carrier, has been arrested on charges of giving favors to a lawmaker's daughter during the company's hiring process in 2012.The Seoul Southern District Prosecutors' Office said Thursday that the court issued an arrest warrant for the suspect, 63, surnamed Kim, for allegedly giving favors to Rep. Kim Sung-tae's daughter.The daughter, who became a KT intern in April 2011, was later hired as a full-time employee.Investigators confirmed that she failed to make it through a document review, the first stage of the hiring process.The prosecution suspects that Kim, former floor leader of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party, peddled his influence to secure a position for his daughter. She left the company in February 2018.

Mar 14, 2019By Jung Min-ho

Former KT executive arrested for helping lawmaker's daughter get full-time job

Marijuana smuggling surges drastically

Alaska Cannabis Club CEO Charlo Greene smokes a joint at the medical marijuana dispensary in Anchorage, Alaska. AP-YonhapBy Kim Hyun-binThere has been a surge in cannabis product smuggling here in recent years especially after California and Canada legalized the use of recreational marijuana.According to Incheon Main Customs, Thursday, it recorded 60 cases of marijuana smuggling and confiscated 7.8 kilograms of these products in 2017. But the number of cases soared 303 percent to 242 in 2018, and quantity increased 268 percent to 28.7 kilograms of weed products.From the end of last year, the customs office has seen a huge increase in the smuggling of marijuana cartridges that can be smoked like electronic cigarettes ― 79 cases with a total 3.5 kilograms since November. The number is significant as it exceeds the total number of marijuana cartridge smuggling cases in all of 2018: 45 cases and close to 2 kilograms. Diverse weed products have been confiscated including marijuana cookies, chocolates and gummies. They were mostly smuggled by travelers and international mail and freight.Un

Mar 14, 2019By Kim Hyun-bin

PHOTOS K-pop sex scandal suspects face police probe

Jung Joon-young, third from left in front, charged with illegal filming and distribution of sex videos featuring himself and a variety of women, faces a mass of journalists after arriving at Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency in Jongno-gu on Thursday morning for questioning. Korea Times photo by Choi Won-suk Jung Joon-young looks back as he walks to Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency in Jongno-gu for questioning on Thursday morning. Korea Times photo by Choi Won-sukJung Joon-young answers journalists' questions before entering Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency in Jongno-gu on Thursday morning for questioning. While keeping his words to a minimum, he said he would "sincerely answer the authority's questions." Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chulSeungri, former member of K-pop boy band BIGBANG, walks toward Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency in Jongno-gu on Thursday for questioning on charges of sex-for-business favors and illicit drug use. He arrived at the agency about four hours after Jung Joon-young went inside for questioning on charges of filming and distributing sex videos. Korea Times

Mar 14, 2019By Ko Dong-hwan

K-pop sex scandal suspects face police probe [PHOTOS]

Male celebrities' chatroom reveals insensitivity to sexual violence

Reporters wait outside the office of a digital forensic company in southern Seoul, Wednesday, while police search the business that singer Jung Joon-young left his phone with for 'repairs' in 2016. At the time Jung refused to submit his phone to police after he was accused of secretly filming his ex-girlfriend, saying it was with a repair firm due to a problem. / Yonhap Chatroom comments suggest police complicity in wrongdoings at clubsBy Lee Suh-yoonNew revelations from a chatroom where male celebrities and their acquaintances shared sex videos filmed without the consent of their partners have refueled an age-old debate on how male-only groups continue to tolerate ― even encourage ― a culture of sexual violence toward women.One dialogue from April 2016, first reported by local broadcaster SBS, is particularly revealing about how women were sexually objectified by the chatroom members for their own bonding in these closed online spaces. In the disclosed snippet, a m

Mar 13, 2019

Male celebrities' chatroom reveals insensitivity to sexual violence

IT group CEO found dead during investigation into alleged abuse

Marker Group CEO Song Myeong-bin was found dead on Wednesday morning, the day he was scheduled to undergo a court review over issuance of an arrest warrant for his alleged abuse of an employee. / YonhapBy Kim Jae-heunMarker Group CEO Song Myeong-bin was found dead Wednesday morning, the day he was scheduled to undergo a court review over the issuance of an arrest warrant for his alleged abuse of an employee. According to the police, a neighbor found his body at his apartment complex in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, at 4:40 a.m. He was already dead when first responders arrived.He was scheduled to attend a Seoul Southern District Court session in the morning where the court was to decide whether to issue a warrant for his arrest.He was accused of habitual assault, blackmail and violation of the Labor Standards Act, after an employee of his company, surnamed Yang, filed a complaint with the police last November accusing Song of habitually assaulting him with an iron pipe, shoehorn and wooden bar over a period of three years. A video of Song beating him was made public a month later and we

Mar 13, 2019By Kim Jae-heun

IT group CEO found dead during investigation into alleged abuse

Digital entrepreneur dead in apparent suicide amid assault probe

Song Myung-bean, head of Marker Group, leaves Seoul Gangseo Police Station on Jan. 6 after receiving an investigation on charges of abusing his employees over multiple times. YonhapA digital expert known for introducing the concept of "the right to be forgotten" to South Korea fell to his death Wednesday in an apparent suicide amid a police investigation into allegations he assaulted a colleague. Song Myung-bean, head of Marker Group, was found dead on the ground outside his apartment in Goyang, just north of Seoul, at about 4:40 a.m., according to police. Police said they found a six-page suicide note in Song's home. Song lived on the 12th floor of the building.Song, 50, was being probed over a complaint filed by the former head of the company, who claims that he was repeatedly beaten by Song with various tools, such as a steel pipe, over the past three years. Police have sought an arrest warrant for Song and a court hearing was due to be held Wednesday to decide on his detention. He has denied the allegations, accusing the partner of framing him to conceal his own crimes, including

Mar 13, 2019

Digital entrepreneur dead in apparent suicide amid assault probe

K-pop singer Jung Joon-young booked for illegal sex video filming

Nightclub scandal expands to other celebritiesBy Kang Seung-wooA brawl at a nightclub affiliated with Seungri of boy band Big Bang is rapidly expanding into a scandal that is rocking the entertainment industry, with fellow K-pop star Jung Joon-young being booked for illicitly recording and sharing sex videos.Jung Joon-young, right, arrives at Incheon International Airport, Tuesday, amid allegations that he secretly filmed women he was having sex with and shared the videos with acquaintances. / Korea Times photo by Hong In-kiThe Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency said, Tuesday, that it booked Jung as a suspect following allegations that he secretly filmed women he was having sex with and shared the videos with acquaintances, including Seungri, in several mobile group chat rooms. The allegations were first reported by local broadcaster SBS, Monday night.The police plan to question Jung as soon as possible, following his return to Korea late Tuesday after he canceled participation in the shooting of a reality TV show in the United States. When he arrived at Incheon International Airport,

Mar 12, 2019By Kang Seung-woo

K-pop singer Jung Joon-young booked for illegal sex video filming

10 Vietnamese arrested for smuggling fake alien registration certificates from China

Ten Vietnamese nationals have been arrested on charges of attempting to buy fake certificates of alien registration from a Chinese broker. gettyimagesbankTen Vietnamese nationals staying in South Korea illegally have been arrested on charges of attempting to buy forged certificates of alien registration from a Chinese broker, immigration officials said Tuesday.The Ministry of Justice's Korea Immigration Service (KIS) said it has arrested a 20-year-old Vietnamese man and nine other nationals of the Southeast Asian country on charges of forgery of official documents and violation of the Immigration Control Act and referred all of them to the prosecution for indictment.The Vietnamese nationals, whose identities were not disclosed, are accused of asking a Chinese broker to forge South Korean certificates of alien registration and send them via international express mail in order to conceal their status or avoid crackdowns.The Incheon International Airport branch office of the KIS launched an investigation after discovering 13 forged alien registration certificates dispatched via internat

Mar 12, 2019

10 Vietnamese arrested for smuggling fake alien registration certificates from China

Chinese student stabs friend in Busan

Police arrested a Chinese student, 27, for attempted murder. YonhapBy Lee Gyu-leePolice have arrested a Chinese international student for allegedly trying to kill a fellow Chinese student in Haeundae, Busan, on March 11.According to Haeundae police, the suspect, 27, and the victim, 31, had been drinking. Shortly after midnight on Monday, they got into an argument and the student stabbed the other one with a 30-centimeter knife.The victim is in a stable condition in hospital. Police went to a house after the victim called his friend, and the friend phoned 119, saying, “Two Chinese men are fighting, and one is bleeding.” Police said they found the suspect drunk and incoherent, and took him into custody. The suspect and victim go to the same school in Busan.

Mar 11, 2019By Lee Gyu-lee

'Reenactments of sex crimes violate human rights'

It is a human rights violation for a law enforcement authority to make a victim of sexual violence participate in a reenactment as part of its investigation, Korea's human rights watchdog said. / GettyimagebankBy Kim Jae-heunIt is a human rights violation for a law enforcement authority to make a victim of sexual violence participate in a reenactment as part of its investigation, Korea's human rights watchdog said Sunday. The National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK) recommended prosecutors devise measures to prevent such human rights violations from reoccurring and further traumatizing victims.In 2014, Lee Kyung-hee, a national rhythmic gymnastics team coach who defected from North Korea, claimed a ranking official at the Korea Gymnastics Association had sexually harassed her and tried to rape her. The official resigned at the time but was again named as a vice head of the association, and Lee made the assault public via broadcast.According to the NHRCK, the prosecutors told Lee to re-enact the crime twice during their investigation in 2017 and had a stand-in do so once. A j

Mar 11, 2019By Kim Jae-heun

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