14-Year-Old Blank Cartridge "Pass the Parcel" That Started at Incheon Airport...Reservist in His 30s Acquitted

Indicted on charges of leaking blank cartridges received at a 2010 military competition
Court: "Even the color of the bag handed over conflicts, so it lacks credibility"

A reservist in his 30s who was put on trial on charges of embezzling blank cartridges distributed at an army event more than 10 years ago and passing them to another person was acquitted by the court.

This was because the defendant's argument was accepted—that those who were caught possessing blank cartridges at the airport engaged in a so-called "pass the parcel"-style shifting of responsibility to avoid punishment, and that he was falsely accused.

According to the legal community and others on the 5th, the Third Regional Military Court recently acquitted reservist Mr. A, who had been indicted on charges of embezzling military supplies.

Mr. A was put on trial on charges of, in 2010, failing to return the blank cartridges and cartridge cases distributed to him when he participated in an army competition, secretly taking them out of the unit, and giving them to an acquaintance as a souvenir.

The investigation of Mr. A began 14 years later, in 2024, when Mr. B, who runs a survival goods shop, was caught possessing blank cartridges at Incheon Airport. At the time, when pressed about the source of the blank cartridges, Mr. B stated, "I received them from an acquaintance, Mr. C." Mr. C then claimed, "The blank cartridges in question were something I received from Mr. A, a fellow non-commissioned officer during military service 14 years ago, and had kept, and recently handed over to Mr. B," and the military prosecution indicted Mr. A based on this statement.

Mr. A completely denied the military prosecution's charges. He countered, "During my military service I worked as the inspection team leader at the ammunition depot, so I know the strictness of ammunition management better than anyone, and even after discharge I am engaged in military supply-related work, so I have no motive whatsoever to commit the crime." He also countered, "The statements of Mr. B and Mr. C are nothing more than an evasion of responsibility to avoid their own punishment, and claims about something from 14 years ago without specific verification lack credibility."

The court accepted Mr. A's argument and acquitted him.

The court judged, "The lot number (Batch Number) of the blank cartridges caught at the airport is a number that was widely used in various competitions at the time, and this alone cannot conclude that Mr. A leaked them."

It also found that the credibility of the acquaintances' statements was low.

The court stated, "Mr. C's statement that he kept the bag received from Mr. A 14 years ago without even checking its contents and then handed it over to Mr. B as it was is difficult to accept as common sense." It also pointed out, "While Mr. C said he gave Mr. B a black plastic bag, Mr. B stated he received a transparent plastic pack—the two men's statements about the color and shape of the bag handed over do not match."

Attorney Seo In-ho of Daeryun LLC, who represented Mr. A, explained, "This case was one in which the client, a former reserve sergeant first class, was unreasonably indicted based solely on the responsibility-evading statements of third parties trying to avoid their own criminal charges," adding, "Through a legal response that denied the identity of the evidence and impeached the credibility of the statements, we were able to obtain an acquittal."

Reporter Son Jong-uk handbell@kyeonggi.com

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14-Year-Old Blank Cartridge "Pass the Parcel" That Started at Incheon Airport...Reservist in His 30s Acquitted (Go to link)