Three men in their 20s sentenced to six months in prison each for threatening police officers while shouting “fake cops”

[Financial News] Three men who threatened a police officer near a vote-counting center at Olympic Park in Jamsil, Seoul, by accusing the officer of being a “fake cop” were sentenced to six months in prison at their first trial. Two defendants who had stood trial without being detained were taken into custody in court after receiving prison sentences.
On the 6th, Lee Joon-gu, a single-judge of the Seoul Eastern District Court’s Criminal Division 7, sentenced Mr. Park (35), Mr. Kim (23), and Mr. Kim (24), who were indicted on charges of special obstruction of official duties, to six months in prison each.
They are accused of following a police officer on duty at a protest near the vote-counting center at Olympic Park in Seoul’s Songpa District last June, shouting “fake cop” at the officer, and threatening the officer by surrounding them with other participants.
The court found that the defendants had committed the crime despite being able to recognize that the victim was a police officer.
In particular, regarding Mr. Kim (24), who denied conspiring and acting intentionally, the court cited the fact that the victimized officer was wearing a uniform, including work clothes, a cap, and a vest with a name tag, and was carrying a radio. The court found that Kim knew or could have known that the person was a police officer, since the officer had directly identified their affiliation, rank, and name to him.
The court noted, “If they had genuinely suspected that the person was impersonating a police officer, they could have checked whether the person really was an officer by reporting it to 112 or taking other such steps, but they did nothing,” adding, “They committed the crime on the basis of vague suspicions and speculation, then denied it and showed no remorse.”
The court also found the remaining two defendants, including Mr. Park, who admitted the facts alleged in the indictment, guilty of all the charges.
The fact that each defendant deposited 10 million to 15 million won with the court to compensate the victim was considered in sentencing. However, because the victimized police officer refused to collect the deposits, the court gave this factor only limited consideration.
The court found that the two defendants who had stood trial without being detained posed a flight risk and remanded them into custody in court that day. Mr. Park had previously been sent to trial in custody.
At the final hearing held on the 1st of last month, prosecutors had sought a one-year prison sentence for each of the three defendants, saying, “Their culpability is not minor, and they have not been forgiven by the victim.”
[email protected] Dong-hyeok Lee Reporter