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Man stabs 3 after being fired over alleged sexual assault

A man stabbed three people at an office in eastern Seoul on Tuesday after being fired for an alleged sexual assault against one of the victims, police said. The 60-something man, surnamed Jo, attacked two women in their 50s and 60s and a man in his 70s inside an office of a redevelopment cooperative in Cheonho-dong, Gangdong District, around 10:20 a.m. according to the police. The victims were taken to nearby hospitals but not in life-threatening condition. The suspect, who previously headed the cooperative, was apprehended at the scene on charges of attempted murder and questioned about his motives. According to members of the cooperative, Jo has been standing trial on charges of sexually assaulting the 50-something woman, who works for the organization, in July. Prior to Tuesday's stabbing, he reportedly visited the woman at the office and sought to reach a settlement after prosecutors demanded a fine. Jo was dismissed from his post over the incident.

Nov 4, 2025By Yonhap
Man stabs 3 after being fired over alleged sexual assault

Ex-President Yoon attends trial over alleged attempt to obstruct his detention

Former President Yoon Suk Yeol appeared at one of his trials Tuesday, signaling his intention to defend himself against key witnesses of his failed attempt to impose martial law in December. Yoon had not attended his two martial law-related trials since being placed under arrest a second time in July, but recently resumed his appearances. His attendance at a hearing at the Seoul Central District Court on Tuesday came as Kim Seong-hoon, former deputy chief of the Presidential Security Service (PSS), and former PSS chief Park Chong-jun were set to testify. The two are suspected of obstructing Yoon's detention by investigators in January and involvement in deleting secure phone records from servers. Yoon had cited health issues as the reason for his absence from multiple consecutive hearings. His decision to suddenly reappear is likely connected to the type of witnesses being summoned, with recent witnesses having spoken to him directly or able to provide key testimony regarding the martial law plan.

Nov 4, 2025By Yonhap
Ex-President Yoon attends trial over alleged attempt to obstruct his detention

4 indicted under arrest for leaking Samsung SDI's EV battery technology overseas

Prosecutors on Monday indicted 15 people and entities, four under arrest, on charges of stealing and leaking core state-protected technology related to electric vehicle (EV) batteries developed by Samsung SDI to foreign companies, officials said. The Suwon District Prosecutors Office said the four, including the head of a company accused of orchestrating the leak, were indicted with physical detention on charges of violating the industrial technology protection act, the unfair competition prevention act and others. Eleven others were also indicted without physical detention, including a former Samsung SDI employee and two KOSDAQ-listed corporate entities. The suspects are accused of siphoning design models for EV battery components developed by Samsung SDI and one of its partner firms — key industrial secrets designated as core state-protected technology — between October 2022 and February this year, and illegally using them for business purposes. They are also suspected of leaking the confidential data to secondary battery companies in Vietnam and China. The leaked information includ

Nov 3, 2025By Yonhap
4 indicted under arrest for leaking Samsung SDI's EV battery technology overseas

Police apprehend 114 suspects based in Cambodia over 'no-show,' other fraud schemes

Police have apprehended 114 suspects associated with a scam ring based in Cambodia for "no-show" and other fraud schemes targeting businesses in Korea, officials said Monday. The Gangwon Provincial Police said the suspects, both Koreans and foreigners, were apprehended, with 18 under formal arrest, following an investigation into 560 fraud cases. In the fraud cases, the suspects posed as political party officials, military officers or presidential staff to place false orders with restaurants and other businesses without showing up for reservations, swindling them out of a total of 6.9 billion won ($4.8 million). After identifying the base of the scam ring at a criminal complex in Sihanoukville, Cambodia, police raided its call center in collaboration with the National Police Agency, Interpol and the National Intelligence Service to apprehend the suspects. Roughly 80 percent of those caught were in their 20s or 30s, and four of them were teenagers. One in four suspects was female. The call center in Cambodia, operated by the overseas scam ring, was responsible for laundering the group's cr

Nov 3, 2025By Yonhap
Police apprehend 114 suspects based in Cambodia over 'no-show,' other fraud schemes

Ex-President Yoon appears for insurrection trial

Former President Yoon Suk Yeol attended his insurrection trial Monday, his second appearance since last week after being absent from the proceedings for four months. The ousted president is being tried on charges of leading an insurrection and abusing his power through his failed imposition of martial law in December last year. Yoon had not appeared at his trial since he was placed under arrest for a second time in July, citing health reasons, but started attending the trial last Thursday. Kwak Jong-keun, the former chief of the Army Special Warfare Command, will testify at Monday's hearing. Kwak has claimed that he received orders from Yoon to drag out lawmakers from the National Assembly during the short-lived martial law imposition. Yoon has argued that deploying the military to the parliament building was necessary to maintain public order without suppressing the civilians. Yoon has reportedly decided to attend the trial to better exercise his right to defense as key witnesses are testifying in court. He attended the first hearing of another trial on martial law-related charges in Sept

Nov 3, 2025By Yonhap
Ex-President Yoon appears for insurrection trial

Korea launches tax probe into local office linked to Cambodian scam ring

Korea's tax authorities said Monday they have launched an investigation into a domestic branch of the Cambodia-based Prince Group, which is now suspected of operating a global scam network. The National Tax Service (NTS) began the investigation into the office, located in central Seoul, following a governmentwide review of Korean nationals allegedly involved in online scams run by criminal organizations, including Prince Group. The group has faced international sanctions over its involvement in kidnapping, torture and murder. According to the NTS, the group allegedly set up overseas real estate consulting firms in major commercial areas of Seoul, hiring local staff while disguising these offices as mere liaison points. The group is suspected of having raised tens or hundreds of millions of won from domestic investors for real estate projects and transferred them to affiliated Cambodian companies. "We have not been able to verify that domestic investors actually acquired the properties," Ahn Deok-soo, an NTS official, told reporters. The official added that the group is also suspected of

Nov 3, 2025By Yonhap
Korea launches tax probe into local office linked to Cambodian scam ring

Special counsel team cites circumstances of ex-first lady Kim's alleged involvement in personnel favors

A special counsel team has cited circumstances that Kim Keon Hee, wife of former President Yoon Suk Yeol, may have been involved in a series of personnel requests for the presidential office under the previous administration. On Wednesday, special counsel Min Joong-ki's team disclosed evidence that a shaman involved in Kim's bribery case had requested the appointment of eight individuals to posts at the presidential office through Kim, shortly after the 2022 presidential elections. Two of them were later confirmed to have worked at the presidential office, while another was appointed as a consul general in September that year. Investigators suspect that Kim had received the list of the eight individuals and may have exercised influence in the hiring process. In August, Min's team indicted Kim with physical detention on charges of violating the Capital Market Act, the Political Funds Act and a law on the acceptance of bribes for mediation, making her the first spouse of a former president to stand trial under custody. Specifically, she was accused of conspiring with a former head of Deutsc

Nov 2, 2025By Yonhap
Special counsel team cites circumstances of ex-first lady Kim's alleged involvement in personnel favors

Prosecutors seek suspended sentence in ‘Choco Pie theft’ case

Prosecutors have requested a suspended sentence for a 41-year-old security guard accused of stealing snacks worth 1,050 won ($0.73) from another company’s office refrigerator, overturning an earlier 50,000 won fine imposed by a lower court. During an appellate hearing held at the Jeonju District Court on Thursday, prosecutors said that although the theft charge against the defendant was clear, the court should show leniency given the minor value of the items. “The defendant has prior convictions, including for theft, and even received a suspended sentence in 2019 after claiming he could lose his job,” prosecutors said. “Despite this, he again took another person’s property lightly and committed the same offense without remorse.” However, prosecutors acknowledged that the stolen items — a Choco Pie and a custard cake — amounted to just 1,050 won, adding that a conviction leading to job loss “could be excessively harsh.” They also noted efforts to listen to public opinion before reaching a fair conclusion, ultimately recommending a suspended sentence “as a final act o

Oct 31, 2025By Hankookilbo
Prosecutors seek suspended sentence in ‘Choco Pie theft’ case

2 arrested for attempted murder and abduction of popular YouTuber in Incheon

Two men have been arrested on charges of kidnapping and attempting to murder a well-known gaming YouTuber with more than 1 million subscribers in Incheon. Incheon Yeonsu Police said Thursday that they had detained a man in his 20s and another in his 30s on charges of attempted murder and joint confinement. Judge Yoo A-ram of the Incheon District Court issued arrest warrants, citing concerns of flight risk. According to police, the suspects abducted the victim, a man in his 30s, at around 10:40 p.m. on Sunday in the underground parking lot of an apartment complex in Songdo International City, Incheon. They lured him out by claiming they would repay borrowed money, then forced him into a vehicle and drove about 200 kilometers to Geumsan County, South Chungcheong Province, where they attempted to kill him with a blunt weapon. Before the meeting, the victim had contacted police, warning that his life was in danger. Investigators tracked the suspects through CCTV footage and arrested them in a park in Geumsan around 2:40 a.m. on Monday— roughly four hours after the abduction. The victim sust

Oct 30, 2025By Hankookilbo
2 arrested for attempted murder and abduction of popular YouTuber in Incheon

14-year sentence confirmed for man who killed girlfriend, hid body in cement

A man in his 50s who murdered his live-in girlfriend and hid her body in cement in a rooftop apartment has been sentenced to 14 years in prison, 16 years after the crime. According to the legal sources Wednesday, the Supreme Court upheld a lower court’s ruling that sentenced the 59-year-old man, surnamed Kim, to 14 years for murder and an additional two years and six months for violating the Narcotics Control Act. Kim had been living with a woman in her 30s in Geoje, South Gyeongsang Province, since May 2007. In October 2008, after finding her with another man, Kim bludgeoned her to death following an argument. He then placed her body in a suitcase, sealed it with bricks and cement on the apartment’s outdoor veranda, and continued living there. The victim’s remains were discovered in August last year, 16 years after the killing, when the landlord removed the cement structure during waterproofing work. Her fingerprints were still intact, allowing police to identify Kim as the suspect. While under police investigation, Kim was also found to have purchased and used 0.5 grams of methamp

Oct 30, 2025By Hankookilbo
14-year sentence confirmed for man who killed girlfriend, hid body in cement
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