Man in His 30s Charged with "Aggravated Rape" of a Heavily Intoxicated Woman Cleared by Prosecution for Insufficient Evidence

Sued for conspiring with companions to assault and rape a heavily intoxicated woman at a Seoul lodging establishment
The suspect's side: "By analyzing objective materials, we specifically demonstrated that there was no incapacity to resist and no joint crime"

A man in his 30s who had been suspected of sexually assaulting a heavily intoxicated woman in conspiracy with acquaintances received a decision of no charge at the prosecution stage.

According to the legal community on the 22nd, the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, on the 17th of last month, issued a no-charge (non-prosecution) disposition on grounds of insufficient evidence for A, a man in his 30s referred on charges of aggravated rape and quasi-rape.

A was accused of assaulting, threatening, and raping heavily intoxicated woman B, together with acquaintances, at a lodging establishment in Seoul last November.

During the investigation, A completely denied the charges. A's side argued, "B first suggested continuing to hang out and accompanied us to the lodging establishment, and afterward, we naturally conversed and so on—the sexual relations took place by mutual consent." He also emphasized that there was no coercion, stressing that after the incident B contacted him first and they had an ordinary conversation.

The prosecution, which took over the case, accepted A's argument and judged it to be a no-charge case. The prosecution found that no clear circumstances capable of suppressing B—such as assault or threat—were confirmed at the time of the sexual relations, and that there was insufficient objective evidence to recognize that A's group jointly planned or committed the crime.

In addition, the facts that B did not immediately leave the scene or ask a third party for help after waking up, and that after the incident she continued a natural conversation via social media, were also considered major grounds for the non-prosecution disposition.

Attorney Jung Hong-cheol of the law firm Daeryun, who defended A, explained, "For the crime of aggravated rape to be established, it must be proven with objective evidence that the victim was at the time in a state of mental incapacity or incapacity to resist, and that the suspects jointly committed the crime while aware of this."

He continued, "In this case, by closely analyzing objective materials such as the amount of alcohol consumed, the message records before and after the incident, and the process of returning home, and by specifically demonstrating that it was difficult to recognize the victim's incapacity to resist and the joint crime, we were able to obtain a non-prosecution disposition."

Reporter Son Jong-uk handbell@kyeonggi.com

[View Full Article]
Man in His 30s Charged with "Aggravated Rape" of a Heavily Intoxicated Woman Cleared by Prosecution for Insufficient Evidence (Go to link)