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Special counsel to indict shaman linked to ex-first lady next week

A special counsel team plans to indict a shaman linked to former first lady Kim Keon Hee next week on bribery and other charges. Special counsel Min Joong-ki's team, which is investigating various criminal allegations involving the former first lady, plans to indict Jeon Seong-bae, better known as Geonjin, with physical detention next Monday, one day before his pretrial arrest expires. Jeon, who has been under arrest since Aug. 21, faces charges of delivering a diamond necklace, two Chanel bags and other gifts from the Unification Church to the then first lady in 2022, along with the church's request for various policy favors from the administration of then President Yoon Suk Yeol. He is also accused of receiving around 100 million won ($71,800) in so-called prayer money from various political hopefuls ahead of the June 2022 local elections in exchange for requesting their nominations to Yoon's confidants. Moreover, he is suspected of involvement in a campaign to recruit Church members as members of the then ruling People Power Party to back Rep. Kweon Seong-dong's bid as party leader in

Sep 4, 2025By Yonhap
Special counsel to indict shaman linked to ex-first lady next week

Court upholds suspended jail term for footballer Hwang Ui-jo for illegal filming

A Seoul court on Thursday upheld a suspended one-year prison term against footballer Hwang Ui-jo for illegally filming his sexual encounters with a woman without her consent. An appellate panel of the Seoul Central District Court affirmed the earlier ruling suspended for two years against the striker for the Turkish professional football club Alanyaspor. The 33-year-old was earlier indicted on charges of filming two women without their consent on four occasions between June and September 2022. The court convicted him of charges related to one woman but acquitted him of charges of secretly filming the other when they were on a video call, just as the earlier ruling did. "The victims experienced extreme mental distress," the court said. "While the act of dissemination was done by someone else, it was based on the defendant's filming." After the ruling, Hwang released a statement apologizing to the victims and vowed to focus on football to regain trust from his fans.

Sep 4, 2025By Yonhap
Court upholds suspended jail term for footballer Hwang Ui-jo for illegal filming

Police to detain suspect behind stabbing at pizza store that killed 3

Police plan to apprehend the suspect behind a stabbing at a pizza store in Seoul that left three people dead once he is discharged from the hospital, officials said Thursday. On Wednesday, the 41-year-old suspect killed a 49-year-old pizza franchise company employee, a 60-year-old interior contractor and his 32-year-old daughter with a sharp weapon at his franchise pizza store in the southwestern ward of Gwanak. The suspect injured himself as he tried to take his own life and is currently receiving treatment at an intensive care unit in a nearby hospital. He is expected to be discharged in a few days. The Gwanak Police Station said it plans to immediately take the suspect into custody on murder charges once he is discharged for questioning. The suspect, who ran the pizza store for about two years, had been in a dispute with the victims over the store's interior construction work. In a statement, the franchise pizza company denied ever forcing the suspect to make interior renewals to the store, claiming the dispute stemmed from warranties for broken tiles.

Sep 4, 2025By Yonhap
Police to detain suspect behind stabbing at pizza store that killed 3

Acting top prosecutor defends prosecution's right for supplementary investigations

The acting top prosecutor has defended the prosecution's right to order supplementary investigations as its "duty," his office said Thursday, amid the ruling Democratic Party of Korea's (DPK) push to abolish such powers. Acting Prosecutor General Noh Man-seok made the remarks the previous day as he visited the Busan High Prosecutors' Office and District Prosecutors' Office in the southeastern coastal city. "While following due process, uncovering the substantive truth through supplementary investigation is not the prosecution's right but its duty," Noh was quoted as saying. Noh's remarks appear to be aimed at the DPK's recent push to reform the prosecution by taking away such rights.

Sep 4, 2025By Yonhap
Acting top prosecutor defends prosecution's right for supplementary investigations

Supreme Court OKs ruling to retain ruling party lawmaker's Assembly seat

Rep. Kim Moon-soo of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea will retain his National Assembly seat after the Supreme Court on Thursday upheld lower courts' fine of 900,000 won ($650) for him in his election law violation case. Kim was indicted on charges of disclosing the results of his own opinion poll on Facebook on January 9 last year ahead of the general election. By law, a lawmaker will lose their seat if a fine of more than 1 million won on violation of election law is finalized.

Sep 4, 2025By Yonhap
Supreme Court OKs ruling to retain ruling party lawmaker's Assembly seat

3 dead in stabbing attack at restaurant in Seoul

Three people died in a stabbing attack at a restaurant in Seoul on Wednesday, with the suspect attempting to take his own life, officials said. The 40-something man attacked two men and a woman with a sharp weapon at the restaurant in Seoul's southwestern ward of Gwanak at around 10:57 a.m., according to police and rescue authorities. The victims were rushed to the hospital but did not survive. The suspect reportedly tried to take his own life but was rescued. Police believe the suspect may have been motivated by a business dispute and said an investigation into the incident is currently under way.

Sep 3, 2025By Yonhap
3 dead in stabbing attack at restaurant in Seoul

‘3,600% profit’ lure drives surge in coin scams, 1,000 cases in 6 months

An investment seminar held on Aug. 26 at a Seoul office building drew dozens of mostly elderly attendees. The speaker, identified as Mr. A, promoted a newly issued cryptocurrency called “OO Coin.” “Just buy it and you will receive 1 percent per day through compound interest,” he said, urging participants to invest for at least a year. “We guarantee at least 100 dollars to start, and if you bring in new investors, you get extra incentives.” He claimed investors would see returns of “at least 3,600 percent, up to 7,900 percent in one year,” adding that the coin’s fixed value of one dollar meant “no risk of losing your principal.” When asked by this reporter for the project’s white paper, a document outlining its business plan and issuance volume, Mr. A deflected, telling attendees to look for a file uploaded to a Telegram channel. No such document was found, but the group had already attracted 1,600 members. According to data obtained by the Hankook Ilbo from the National Police Agency, there were 991 cryptocurrency-related crime cases between January and June this

Sep 3, 2025By Hankookilbo
‘3,600% profit’ lure drives surge in coin scams, 1,000 cases in 6 months

Gov't seeks legal grounds to dismiss heads of public firms over major safety accidents

The government plans to establish legal grounds to dismiss the head of a public institution in the event of serious workplace accidents, the finance ministry said Monday. The measure was discussed during a government meeting on public safety, presided over by Finance Minister Koo Yun-cheol. It follows a fatal incident in late August in which two subcontracted workers were killed and four others were seriously injured after being struck by a passenger train in the southeastern county of Cheongdo. As part of the plan, the government will seek to revise the relevant law on public institutions to stipulate "safety management" as a core principle in operations. The revision will include provisions allowing for the dismissal of institutional heads found responsible for major industrial accidents, the ministry said. The government also aims to strengthen the role of safety in the annual management evaluations of public institutions, the ministry added.

Sep 1, 2025By Yonhap
Gov't seeks legal grounds to dismiss heads of public firms over major safety accidents

Korea to tackle phishing crimes as annual losses reach $575 mil.

Korea is launching an intensive nationwide crackdown on phishing crimes, stepping up its fight as evolving criminal tactics make attempted scams an unsettling and pervasive part of people’s daily life, with financial losses soaring to nearly 800 billion won ($575 million) in just seven months. Police said all available investigative resources will be mobilized for five months, starting Monday and lasting until Jan. 31, alongside a special enforcement campaign targeting phishing crimes. Between January and July this year, 16,561 phishing cases — including voice phishing and smishing (a form of phishing using text messages) were reported nationwide. The financial losses reached 799.2 billion won, marking a dramatic 95 percent year-on-year increase in damages and a 14 percent jump in cases. Authorities note this is already the highest seven-month figure ever recorded, quickly approaching last year’s total annual loss of 952.5 billion won. Phishing schemes in Korea have grown increasingly sophisticated, blending seamlessly into daily life. Criminals are targeting victims through fraudu

Sep 1, 2025By Lee Hae-rin
Korea to tackle phishing crimes as annual losses reach $575 mil.

Ex-President Yoon absent from insurrection trial for 7th consecutive time

Former President Yoon Suk Yeol was absent from his insurrection trial for the seventh consecutive time Monday, leading the court to proceed without him. Yoon has declined to appear at his trial at the Seoul Central District Court since his second arrest on July 10 on charges related to his failed attempt to impose martial law. The bench said Monday it will continue with the proceedings in his absence, as there has been no change since the previous hearing last Thursday, when the head of the Seoul Detention Center where Yoon is held reported it was impossible to bring him in by force. Yoon has been standing trial on charges of leading an insurrection and abusing his power through his failed martial law bid in December. Insurrection carries a maximum sentence of life in prison or death. During Monday's hearing, the court is scheduled to hear witness testimony from a military official involved in the martial law plan. Under the Criminal Procedure Code, a trial can proceed in the absence of the defendant in the event he refuses to attend without legitimate grounds and it is deemed impossible o

Sep 1, 2025By Yonhap
Ex-President Yoon absent from insurrection trial for 7th consecutive time
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