"Too Hungry": A Man Steals Two Packs of Rice Cakes and Faces an Unexpected Turn of Events

At around 3 a.m. on September 7, CCTV captured a man taking two packs of rice cakes from a refrigerator placed outside a rice cake shop near Dongbu Market in Chuncheon, Gangwon Province.

The owner of the shop noticed the rice cakes were missing and immediately reported it to the police. Around 3 p.m., police apprehended a 49-year-old man, identified as A, on charges of stealing the rice cakes while he was sleeping rough in an abandoned building.

During police questioning, Mr. A stated, "I stole them because I was hungry."

Police investigation revealed that Mr. A's parents divorced when he was seven years old, after which he lost contact with his mother, and his father was registered as a person of unknown residence.

Since his twenties, he made a living as a daily laborer, moving from one construction site to another—including apartments and houses—through labor agencies.

However, as the construction economy worsened following COVID-19, jobs began to dwindle one by one, and Mr. A eventually had to leave the studio apartment he was living in this past April because he could not pay the monthly rent.

Moving from one cheap inn to another with his remaining money, Mr. A began sleeping rough in an abandoned building starting last month.

He had to make do with "buy-one-get-one-free" instant noodles from convenience stores for most of his meals.

Even though his cell phone service was cut off due to unpaid bills, Mr. A reportedly searched for jobs on job applications by finding places with Wi-Fi and even went to labor agencies in the early morning.

However, there were many days he came away empty-handed.

In fact, the daily labor market in the Chuncheon area has been facing significant difficulties due to a decrease in work and changes in how workers are assigned.

In the past, workers would gather at labor agencies early in the morning and be assigned to sites, but with shrinking work opportunities, attendance and site assignments are now reportedly decided the day before, mainly centered around pre-formed teams.

Upon learning of Mr. A's unfortunate story, the police concluded their investigation on September 8 and connected him with welfare officials at the Chuncheon City Administrative Welfare Center to apply for emergency livelihood support funds.

Additionally, to prevent Mr. A from returning to the streets, police connected him with admission to a homeless rehabilitation facility in Wonju.

Mr. A is currently staying at the facility, where he receives room and board, alongside support for job training and acquiring professional licenses.

Mr. A reportedly told the police, "If I just get a job, I will work hard and live."

Reported by Jung Da-eun | Video by Ahn Jun-hyeok | Graphics by Lee Jeong-ju | Produced by SBS Digital News
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.