Coast Guard Officer Returns to Station Where Victim Works After Sexual Harassment, Coast Guard Cites No Rule Violations

Controversy has arisen as a coast guard officer who was disciplined for making sexually harassing remarks has returned to the police station where the victim works after two years.

According to the Pyeongtaek Coast Guard on Tuesday, Inspector A, who received a three-month pay reduction for sexual harassment, returned to the police station where the victim is stationed last May.

Inspector A was previously transferred to another region after being disciplined for making sexually harassing remarks to a junior subordinate, the victim, in 2022.

However, it was learned that Inspector A later expressed a desire to return to the original workplace and came back through regular personnel procedures after two years.

Under internal Coast Guard regulations, the restriction period preventing a perpetrator of sexual misconduct and a victim from working at the same police station is two years, and Inspector A returned as soon as this period expired.

In response, criticisms are rising over whether the return was appropriate from the perspective of protecting the victim, even if the regulatory restriction period was observed, and the victim is also reported to be strongly protesting.

The Coast Guard stated, "We made every effort to separate the perpetrator and the victim to the extent permitted by internal regulations."

The Coast Guard explained, "Considering that working in the same building or the same department is restricted for 10 years, we thoroughly separated their workplaces and took measures to ensure there are no work-related contacts."

They added, "There are only 21 coast guard stations nationwide, making indefinite separation of affiliations practically difficult," and noted, "We will closely monitor the situation to ensure the victim is not placed in any unfair circumstances going forward."

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.