A man in his 50s who posted more than 3,000 messages mocking victims and bereaved families of the Sewol ferry, Itaewon and Jeju Air disasters has been detained by police. Separately, an internet user indicted for repeatedly posting malicious comments about singer IU (real name Lee Ji-eun) received a suspended prison sentence on appeal.
According to the National Investigation Headquarters of the Korean National Police Agency on Monday, an arrest warrant was issued the previous day for a man in his 50s, identified as A, who faces charges of defamation and insult for posting false claims and content disparaging bereaved families in connection with disasters including the Sewol ferry and Itaewon tragedies. It marks the third detention by the police agency's Secondary Harm Crime Investigation Division, which was launched in July last year on the instructions of President Lee Jae-myung.
A is accused of posting more than 3,000 messages on major domestic online communities over four years from 2022, containing content such as "Sewol was a fraud against the public" and "the Itaewon accident was corpse play." Police believe he repeatedly used provocative expressions such as "the disasters were fabricated" to incite hatred and distrust toward bereaved families. The bereaved families reportedly appealed during the investigation that they "suffered extreme psychological shock and humiliation from posts denying the disasters themselves."
Meanwhile, an internet user indicted for repeatedly posting malicious comments about singer IU (real name Lee Ji-eun) received a suspended prison sentence on appeal. According to the legal community Monday, the Seoul Central District Court's Criminal Appeals Division 9-2 (presiding judges Hwangbo Seung-hyuk, Jung Hye-won and Choi Bo-won) sentenced B, who was indicted on charges of insulting IU, to four months in prison, suspended for one year. B, who had been fined 3 million won at the first trial, received a heavier sentence on appeal after another case in which B was indicted for the same type of crime was merged.
"Even though the victim is a public figure, expressions such as 'fraudster' and 'mentally ill' exceeded the level allowed by social norms," the court said. It also cited as grounds for sentencing the high risk of reoffending, noting that B denied the charges, showed no remorse and repeated the same type of offense. The ruling became final as B did not appeal to the Supreme Court.
