Man Arrested for Mocking Sewol and Itaewon Victims; Lee Says "Depraved Comments Must Be Severely Punished"

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[Financial News] President Lee Jae-myung said on the 30th that "fake news and insulting comments driven by depravity deserve severe punishment," in connection with the arrest of a man in his 50s who mocked victims of the Sewol and Itaewon disasters and their families.
Lee shared a related article on his X account that day and wrote, "Going forward, the police's dedicated team will respond firmly to fake news and secondary harm comments."
Earlier, the Korean National Police Agency's National Office of Investigation said it had arrested a man in his 50s on charges of defaming victims of the Sewol and Itaewon disasters and their families by spreading false information.
The man is accused of repeatedly posting more than 70 false claims and defamatory messages about the Sewol ferry sinking and the Itaewon disaster on online platforms at home and abroad from 2021 to 2024.
Investigators found that he also circulated photos of bereaved family members and posted insulting messages suggesting that "Sewol families were recycled as Itaewon families."
This is the second arrest since the Korean National Police Agency's unit for investigating secondary harm crimes was launched in July last year. In January, police arrested a man in his 60s for distributing videos and posts containing false information about the Itaewon disaster.
Police are also investigating 23 online posts that may constitute crimes among the secondary harm messages uploaded during the recent 12th anniversary memorial period for the Sewol ferry sinking.
west@fnnews.com Seong Seok-woo Reporter