Father Fined for Sending Threatening Texts to Elementary Student Over Son's Online Game Items

A man in his 40s who sent threatening text messages and showed up at a school gate after hearing that his elementary school son had his game items stolen has been fined by a court.

Daegu District Court Judge Jeon Myeong-hwan, presiding over Criminal Case Division 11, announced today (October 28) that he has sentenced A, a man in his 40s indicted for violating the Child Welfare Act, to a fine of 1.5 million won.

A was put on trial for sending 10 threatening text messages to B (11), a classmate of his son at the same school, on August 13 of last year from his home in Chilgok-gun, Gyeongsangbuk-do, after hearing his son complain that B had stolen items from him in the online game "Roblox".

He was found to have sent text messages to B containing statements such as, "I will come to your school or your house after the break ends."

A is also charged with going to the front gate of the elementary school attended by his son and B on August 21 of the same year, where he demanded that B return the items and shouted for about five minutes.

A and B did not know each other, and A's son and B were both fifth graders at the time.

During the trial, A argued that his actions did not constitute emotional abuse, but the court ruled that A had caused the victimized child to feel anxiety and fear, using this as a means to force the return of the game items.

Judge Jeon stated, "The defendant very likely approached with a volume and attitude sufficient to cause the victimized child to feel flustered or draw the attention of people around him," adding, "The action taken at the school objectively amounts to behavior that could cause humiliation or anxiety to the victimized child."

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