Man in his 20s who stole welfare benefits from woman with borderline intellectual disability sentenced to 1 year and 6 months in prison

Yonhap News [Financial News] A man in his 20s who approached a woman with borderline intellectual disability, deceived her by promising to arrange a loan, and embezzled approximately 8 million won in disability and welfare benefits has been sentenced to prison in the first trial. On the 27th, the Seoul Southern District Court, Criminal Division 10 (Judge Kim Beom-jin), sentenced Mr.
Ahn (23), who was brought to trial on charges of theft and violation of the Road Traffic Act, to 1 year and 6 months in prison. The court pointed out, "He has a history of multiple punishments for theft, fraud, and driving without a license, and committed this crime during the probation period, despite having already received a suspended sentence last year for violating the Special Act on Prevention of Insurance Fraud and the Road Traffic Act.
" It further stated, "The nature of the crime is poor as he committed theft against a victim with an intellectual disability," adding, "He also failed to reach an agreement with the victim. " However, the court noted that Mr.
Ahn admitted his wrongdoing The court considered the fact that he deposited 10 million won as a mitigating factor. 09 million won in disability and welfare allowances, living support funds, and loan money on 17 occasions in October of the same year.
It was determined that Ahn met A in July 2024 while working as an employee at a pet shop in Gangseo-gu, Seoul, when A visited as a customer. It was revealed that the perpetrator planned the crime after realizing that the victim was maintaining a livelihood through monthly disability and welfare allowances without a steady income, and judging that Mr.
A, who has borderline intellectual disability, would find it difficult to report the damage. While investigating a separate complaint regarding illegal debt collection filed by Mr.
A, the police confirmed that Mr. Ahn had defrauded Mr.
3 million won in private internet loans using Mr. A's name, and launched an investigation into the case.
Upon becoming aware of the police investigation, Mr.
Ahn took a job at a PC cafe in Gyeonggi Province, far from his home, and continued his life on the run, but was apprehended by the police while heading to Seoul to meet an acquaintance.
[email protected] Park Sung-hyun Reporter