“My eyesight’s blurry—I thought it was ours” ... Next-door man’s absurd excuse after opening someone else’s package three times [What do you think?]

[Financial News] A story about repeatedly finding delivery boxes left outside an apartment door opened—and hearing the absurd excuse “My eyesight is blurry, so I thought it was mine” after confronting a neighbor—is stirring outrage online.
A post titled “The guy next door keeps opening our packages” was recently shared on an online community.
After returning from work, the poster, identified as A, found a delivery box in the hallway outside their home half-open. At first, A thought the packaging had been damaged during delivery, but grew suspicious when the same thing happened for the third time this month. Just then, the neighbor came out through the door, and A asked, “Have you happened to see our package?”
The man next door replied, “I opened it thinking it was something for our household. Sorry.” When A pressed him, asking, “Isn’t our building and unit number written in large print on the box?”, the man laughed it off, saying, “My eyesight’s blurry, haha,” then closed the door and went inside.
A said, “I can’t understand how he could have opened someone else’s packages all three times because his eyesight was blurry, but fortunately nothing inside went missing, so it felt awkward to confront him too strongly.” A added, “I asked the management office for help, but all they said was, ‘Work it out amicably among yourselves as neighbors,’ which is frustrating.”

People who read the story criticized the man, saying, “Once could be a mistake, but three times is deliberate voyeurism,” “The unit number is right there, so blaming poor eyesight is habitual peeping,” and “Report him to the police and give him a stern warning.”
Legal experts warn that even if no contents are stolen, the act of opening someone else’s delivery package without permission may itself be punishable as a crime.
Under Article 316 of the Criminal Act (Violation of Secrecy), anyone who uses technical means to discover the contents of or open another person’s sealed or otherwise protected letter, document, drawing, or special media record, such as an electronic record, is punishable by up to three years in prison or a fine of up to 5 million won. A delivery box also contains private information such as a person’s address, name, and order details, and is a sealed item; therefore, opening one without permission may constitute a violation of secrecy.
Article 366 of the Criminal Act (Damage to Property) may also apply to damaging packaging boxes or tape. If intent is proven, the person may be punished for impairing the utility of another person’s property.
A criminal defense lawyer noted, “If the person is a first-time offender or it was a one-off mistake, it may be difficult to prove intent and the case could be closed as negligence. But if the same act was repeated three times in a month and the exact unit number was written on the box, there is a strong likelihood that dolus eventualis would be recognized.”
Experts advised that if similar incidents recur, people should gather objective evidence such as hallway CCTV footage, photos of damaged delivery boxes, and recordings of conversations with the other party, then formally file a complaint with the police or send a content-certified letter issuing a strong warning against a repeat.
[email protected] Moon Young-jin Reporter