Life Sentence Upheld for Leader of 'Vigilante' Sexual Exploitation Ring Who Called Himself 'Pastor'

A life sentence has been finalized for Kim Nok-wan (34), the leader of the "Vigilante," which caused the largest scale of casualties among sexual violence criminal organizations to date.

The Supreme Court's Second Division (Presiding Justice Kwon Young-jun) finalized the lower court's ruling sentencing Kim to life imprisonment today (September 10), as he was indicted on charges including the production of sexually exploitative materials and rape resulting in injury under the Act on the Protection of Children and Juveniles against Sexual Abuse.

The lower court orders, which included wearing an electronic monitoring device for 30 years, a 10-year employment ban at institutions related to children, juveniles, and persons with disabilities, and a 10-year disclosure and notification of personal information, were also upheld.

Kim was arrested and indicted in February of last year on charges of organizing the "Vigilante," a cyber sexual violence crime group that caused the largest number of victims in South Korea, from August 2020 to January of last year. He called himself a "pastor" while sadistically and perversely sexually assaulting minors and producing and distributing sexually exploitative materials.

The Vigilante was a group that obtained the personal information of women who posted photos of their bodies on social media or engaged in conditional meetings, as well as men attempting to enter Telegram "pornography rooms" or "acquaintance defamation rooms." They threatened to leak this information to extort nude photos and produce and distribute sexually exploitative materials, while also luring some victims out to physically assault them.

The number of victims reached 261, which is more than three times that of the similar Telegram "Baksa Room" case (73 victims).

The sexually exploitative materials produced by Kim and his gang amounted to around 2,000 items.

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