Man in His 60s Who Groroped High School Girl and Framed Wife Caught After Prosecutor Investigation

▲ Gunsan Branch of Jeonju District Prosecutors' Office

A man in his 60s who sexually harassed a high school girl and tried to pin the blame on his wife has been caught following a supplementary prosecution investigation.

The Criminal Division 1 of the Gunsan Branch of the Jeonju District Prosecutors' Office (led by Senior Prosecutor Jin Kyung-seop) announced today (August 18) that it has indicted A without detention on charges of violating the Act on the Protection of Children and Youths against Sexual Abuse (forcible indecent act).

A is accused of visiting a high school in Daejeon on November 4 of last year and touching parts of the body of a high school girl, B, inside an elevator.

However, the police who investigated the case identified A's wife, rather than A, as the suspect and forwarded the case to the prosecution.

This was because A's wife made an ambiguous statement during the police investigation, saying, "(I) was next to my husband."

In reality, A's wife was not even inside the elevator at the school at the time of the incident.

Taking over the case, the prosecution conducted a detailed forensic examination of seized mobile phones belonging to those involved and confirmed circumstances indicating that A had framed his wife as the culprit.

When police officers called him early in the investigation, A asked a female acquaintance who had been in the elevator with him at the time to "speak with the police pretending to be my wife."

He fabricated false facts as if he and his wife had been together at the scene.

Subsequently, for reasons unclear, A's wife made statements during her summoning investigation that seemed to help her husband, and it was revealed that the police believed this and transferred the case to the prosecution.

A's wife was recently cleared of charges after the prosecution's supplementary investigation revealed that her husband was the actual perpetrator.

An official from the prosecution said, "Because the statements of those involved in the case were unconvincing, we re-examined the case based on the results of the forensic examination of the seized mobile phones," adding, "While we cannot disclose specific details due to concerns over secondary victimization from sex crimes, we confirmed circumstances in which the defendant continually lied from the early stages of the investigation and have brought charges."

(Photo: Yonhap News)

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