A man in his 20s accused of sexually assaulting a minor he met through a random chat... Sentenced in the first trial, the appeal reduced the sentence to ‘suspended sentence’

Defense attorney claims, “It was not a planned crime and no coercive means were used.”
Daejeon High Court 3rd Criminal Division “There is no definite intent... the sentence of the original trial is too heavy.”

There was a case in which a man in his 20s was indicted on charges of sexually assaulting a minor he met through an online random chat and was sentenced to prison in the first trial, but his sentence was reduced in the appeals court and he was sentenced to probation.

It was confirmed that the 3rd Criminal Division of the Daejeon High Court (Presiding Judge Kim Byeong-sik, and Judges Lee Ui-seok and Kwak Sang-ho) overturned the original trial that sentenced Mr.

The appellate court also ordered Mr. A to take 40 hours of sexual violence treatment classes and to be restricted from employment at organizations related to children, youth, and the disabled for three years.

Mr. A was accused of committing adultery with Ms. B (15 years old), a minor whom he met through random chat around December 2023.

According to Article 305 of the Criminal Act, when an adult has sexual intercourse with a minor under the age of 16, the child's ability to consent is not recognized. Therefore, even if sexual intercourse was consensual, you will be subject to criminal punishment.

Mr. A proposed a meeting with Ms. B, who happened to be in the chat room, and on the day of the incident, he lured her into his vehicle and had sex. However, it was confirmed that Mr. A did not use violence against Ms. B at the time.

The first trial court judged that Mr. A’s crime was serious and sentenced him to two years in prison. The first trial court ruled, “The defendant is deeply guilty of committing adultery with a victim who lacks the ability to exercise sexual self-determination and using it as a means to satisfy his sexual desires.”

Mr. A appealed against the first trial ruling. At the appellate trial, Mr. A requested a reduced sentence, citing the fact that he did not commit the crime premeditated and that he did not use coercive means such as violence or threats.

The appellate court decided to reduce the sentence by accepting Mr. A's argument, saying, "Looking at the conversation between the defendant and the victim and the statements made to the investigative agency, it does not appear that the defendant committed the crime with definite intent."

Lee Ki-jun, a lawyer at Daeryun Law Firm (Lihan), who represented the defendant A in this criminal suit, explained, "The crime of rape of a minor is punished regardless of whether the person is a minor and whether the victim consents or not. If the charge is acknowledged, it is important to lower the sentence. In Mr. A's case, he was able to receive a reduced sentence by proving that there was no intent for the crime and that he is likely to be reborn as a sound member of society if he corrects his wrong coming-of-age attitude."

Reporter Son Dong-wook (twson@lawleader.co.kr)

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Man in his 20s accused of sexually assaulting a minor he met through a random chat... Sentence to prison in first trial, sentence reduced to 'suspended sentence' on appeal (link)