The Yeongdeok Police Station launched Friday an investigation into the death of a man, whose body was found along a hiking trail in Yeongdeok County, North Gyeongsang Province. A mountain trekker who was looking for medicinal herbs called the police after discovering the victim’s body hanging from a tree by his neck, at 7:40 a.m. Friday.  (Yonhap)Police officers said that the victim might be a public servant who went missing after leaving his house at 6:20 a.m. on Dec. 11 in Yeongdeok County, gi

Social Affairs March 23, 2018

A doctor was found guilty on the charge of involuntary manslaughter after he ordered a female patient who had postpartum hemorrhage to be transported to a hospital 40 kilometers away rather than to a nearby hospital, the Supreme Court said Friday. The Supreme Court upheld the lower courts’ ruling Friday, ordering the 59-year-old doctor, surnamed Lee, to pay a fine of 10 million won ($9,300). Lee is accused of refusing to perform a hysterectomy or an ultrasound on the patient, who was bleeding he

Social Affairs March 23, 2018

The Daegu Dongbu Police Station on Friday launched a probe into allegations that a policeman sexually assaulted an intoxicated woman he had met on a blind date. The 30-year-old patrol officer was booked without detention on charges of raping the victim, who was extremely intoxicated and therefore unable to consent, according to police. Police have handed over the case to prosecutors with an indictment. (Yonhap)The 24-year-old victim alleged that the suspect took her to a nearby motel and raped h

Social Affairs March 23, 2018

The Unification Ministry is fine-tuning the details before sending a 160-member art troupe to Pyongyang for two performances between March 31 and April 3. The artists included Cho Yong-pil, Lee Sun-hee, Choi Jin-hee, rock singer Yoon Do-hyun, Baek Ji-young, Jung-in, former Girls’ Generation member Seohyun, Ali and K-pop act Red Velvet.Among the much-anticipated performances, it is said Baek Ji-young is the most popular north of the border, thanks to her award-winning soundtracks for TV dramas an

North Korea March 22, 2018

Police recently arrested 80 people for their alleged smuggling of drugs and online sale via bitcoin currency transactions.Seoul investigators said Wednesday that they were investigating a large-scale drug smuggling ring, where suspects were buying and selling drugs from overseas using bitcoin via an online site called “Deep Web.” A 29-year-old suspect, surnamed Kim, and 23 others were arrested for drug trafficking charges in violation of the Act on the Control of Narcotics. A 32-year-old suspect

Social Affairs March 21, 2018

With a cold snap catching the country off its guard, South Korean students are protesting school policies banning long, padded jackets and coats. A crowd of students in front of one high school in the Yeongdeungpo district of Seoul appeared to be donning the same monotonously colored uniforms Tuesday morning. None of the students were wearing the popular puffy jackets, despite the cold. One 18-year-old student said his school had started putting restrictions on wearing outerwear on top of the st

Social Affairs March 21, 2018

Two men were briefly detained for their alleged involvement in a series of fatal hit-and-run accidents, police said Tuesday. The 27-year-old and 25-year-old suspects, surnamed Suh and Park respectively, were booked without detention on charges of leaving the scene of a multiple-vehicle accident, according to Gyeonggi Icheon Police Station. Suh is accused of hitting a 43-year-old victim, who had passed out on the road toward Majang-myeon, with his Tivoli at 1:30 a.m. Saturday. Suh reportedly retu

Social Affairs March 20, 2018

The Seoul Metropolitan Government has begun to take steps to reduce overtime work in the public sector, mandating that all computers be shut down after 8 p.m. starting Friday. The latest measure comes after the growing number of criticism from Koreans, who lack a decent work-life balance. The city government ordered all computers at the Seoul City Hall building and its Seosomun annex be powered down at 8 p.m. Friday. (Yonhap)The automatic shut-down of computers will be implemented at 7:30 p.m. e

Politics March 20, 2018

BBC’s Seoul correspondent Laura Bicker expressed her disappointment after learning that some Korean media outlets had misinterpreted her article published on March 10 by insinuating that she had called President Moon Jae-in a communist.Bicker requested via Twitter on Sunday that the Korean press “translate my articles fairly.” (Laura Bicker’s Twitter)Some conservative media outlets here had portrayed Bicker’s article as supporting their view of President Moon as a malevolent communist.But the ar

Politics March 20, 2018

A college professor is under criminal scrutiny for physical assault of his students in North Gyeongsang Province, according to the local police station in the area, Monday.The first victim alleged that the professor physically assaulted him in late December 2017, kicking the victim in the shins about 10 times. The victim was hospitalized for two weeks. Not too long after the first victim was allegedly assaulted, the professor reportedly assaulted another student. Three additional students also s

Social Affairs March 19, 2018

A man, 58, received on Monday a reduced sentence for allegedly abusing a neighbor’s pet dog by inserting his finger in the dog’s private parts, in an appellate court. The Seoul High Court has ordered man in his 50s to pay a fine of 2 million won ($1,860). He had initially been sentenced to treatment for alcoholism and four months in prison, but appealed the court’s verdict. The man is accused of causing physical harm to the dog’s vagina after it reportedly scratched his nose with its front paw l

Social Affairs March 19, 2018

The Daejeon High Prosecutors’ Office on Friday demanded life imprisonment for a doctor accused of murdering his wife by injecting her with drugs, in an appellate court. This is the second time prosecutors have sought a life sentence for the doctor. He had received a 35-year jail term during the first trial, but appealed the court’s verdict. The doctor, 45, is accused of having slipped his wife a sleeping pill and then injecting her with illicit substances without her knowledge, thereby killing h

Social Affairs March 16, 2018

The Jeju District Court sentenced Thursday a 98-year-old man to a four-year jail term for the attempted murder of his wife.The man, who lived with his 87-year-old wife in Jeju, allegedly beat her multiple times last year on July 22, after she disagreed with his speaking ill of their children. Following the dispute, the victim decided to move in with her eldest son.  (Yonhap)She reportedly went back to the house where her husband lived to pick up her belongings on Sept. 18 last year. She told her

Social Affairs March 16, 2018

Speculations that a version of the lewd text messages exchanged between the late actor Jo Min-ki and an alleged victim may have been fabricated are sending shockwaves through the online community. Many online commenters have pointed out the possibility that the person who shared the text messages via a Facebook page modified parts of the alleged victim’s words in order to gain more followers on Facebook. The actual alleged victim did not officially report the text messages that went viral on Fac

Social Affairs March 15, 2018

Following a series of deaths by apparent suicide in a single family, police officers found the victims’ husband and father wondering aimlessly in Yeongdeungpo, Seoul on Thursday. They discovered the man around 2 a.m. Thursday. According to the local police station, the man appeared to be in shock upon realizing his wife and two children had taken their lives.It is said the man was in no condition to carry out a conversation due to the trauma. He was transported to the hospital immediately for ev

Social Affairs March 15, 2018