30-Year-Old Man Who Contacted 14-Year-Old via Messenger and Had Sex Ordered to Pay Damages

A court has ruled that a man in his 30s, whose conviction for having sex with a 14-year-old minor he met via social media was finalized, must pay 13 million won in damages to the victim and her mother.

According to the legal community on the 8th, Judge Shin Seung-ah of the Busan District Court Eastern Branch ruled in a damages lawsuit filed by victim A and her mother B against C, a man in his 30s, ordering that "C must pay 10 million won to A and 3 million won to B."

According to the ruling, C saw a post uploaded by A on social media in mid-November of last year, contacted her through a messenger app, and exchanged messages.

At 2:10 AM on the 19th of the same month, C parked his car in front of the main gate of an apartment complex in Busan and had sex with A, who was 14 years old at the time, in the backseat of the vehicle.

C was sent to trial on charges of statutory rape of a minor and was sentenced in April to two years and six months in prison suspended for four years.

C appealed, but the appeal was dismissed, finalizing his sentence.

Statutory rape of a minor is a crime that punishes individuals who have sex with minors—regardless of whether the child consented—in accordance with rape charges to protect children and adolescents.

Judge Shin stated, "It is expected that a significant negative impact will be placed on A's future emotional development and the formation of healthy sexual values," adding, "A's mother also likely suffered considerable mental anguish due to the criminal act committed against her young child."

However, the judge noted that in determining the additional compensation, consideration was given to the fact that C had already paid 7 million won during the first instance of the criminal trial as partial compensation for mental damages, setting the additional compensation at 10 million won for A and 3 million won for B.
(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.