Travel agency representative accused of ‘threats’ after asking “to take down the post” not guilty

A travel agency representative who was booked on charges of intimidation after asking a customer who left a disgruntled message on an online bulletin board to delete the post was cleared by the police.

According to the legal community on the 14th, Yongsan Police Station in Seoul decided not to send Mr. A, who was booked on suspicion of threats, after investigating him. In December of last year, when customer B left a complaint on the bulletin board of the travel agency he runs, Mr. A sent a message saying, “I will file a complaint for obstruction of business and defamation.”

Mr. B sued Mr. A, claiming, “I left a message because the travel agency did not properly fulfill my requirements. I felt very scared when I received the message.” Article 283 of the Criminal Act stipulates that ‘a person who threatens a person shall be punished by imprisonment for not more than two years, a fine of not more than 5 million won, detention, or a minor fine.’

Mr. A denied the charges. It is true that the product Mr. B reserved was not provided smoothly, but he was informed of the refund process and politely asked that the post be taken down, so it cannot be seen as a threat.

As a result of the investigation, the police found it difficult to say that Mr. B actually felt fear. In addition, it was judged that the fact that Mr. A, the company representative, discovered the speculative article and reported it was a legitimate exercise of his rights, and was at an acceptable level in terms of social norms.

Ahn Seung-jin, a lawyer at Daeryun Law Firm who is Mr. A's legal representative, said, "The crime of intimidation is established only when the victim is aware of the notice of harm and feels actual fear. The crime of intimidation is not established simply because he or she heard unpleasant words or felt vague discomfort." Attorney Min also said, “Considering that Mr. A is the representative, there were no illegal elements in requesting the deletion of the post, and because we proved this, we were able to be acquitted.”

Reporter Jeong Cheol-wook

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Travel agency representative accused of 'threats' after demanding “to take down the post” not guilty (Shortcut)