A man in his 30s who assaulted two paramedics inside an ambulance has been fined by a South Korean court.
The Ulsan District Court's 3rd Criminal Division, presided over by Judge Lee Jae-wook, sentenced the defendant, identified only as "A," to a fine of 5 million won ($3,600) for violating the Act on 119 Rescue and Emergency Services, the court announced Wednesday.
In September last year, A called 119 emergency services from a road in Ulju County, Ulsan, claiming he had fallen and injured his ankle. He then boarded the ambulance.
A, who was intoxicated at the time, began shouting and pointing fingers at the paramedics immediately after boarding without apparent reason. He also damaged emergency equipment inside the vehicle. When paramedics asked him to exit, A punched both crew members in the face and grabbed them by their collars.
"The defendant obstructed rescue and emergency activities and used violence against 119 paramedics without justifiable cause," the court said. "However, we took into consideration that the injuries were not severe and that family members and coworkers submitted petitions for leniency."
Such assaults on paramedics remain a persistent nationwide problem. According to the National Fire Agency, there were 261 cases of assaults on 119 paramedics in 2024, exceeding the 10-year annual average of 222 cases. Approximately 83.6% of perpetrators committed their offenses while intoxicated.
Current law stipulates penalties of up to five years in prison or fines up to 50 million won for obstructing firefighting activities through assault or threats against responding personnel. The law explicitly bars sentence reductions for intoxicated offenders.
However, an analysis of 521 resolved cases out of 1,139 assaults over the past five years showed that fines accounted for 390 cases (75%), while prison sentences were handed down in only 102 cases (20%). Critics continue to argue that lenient punishments fail to provide an effective deterrent.