A 60-year-old individual who entered an elementary school during a festival and molested three students has been sentenced to three years in prison in the appellate trial.
The Criminal Division 1 of the Daejeon High Court Cheongju Branch (Presiding Judge Kim Jin-seok) upheld the original sentence of three years in prison for the defendant, identified as A, who was charged with forcible molestation of a minor under the age of 13 under the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment, etc. of Sexual Crimes and violations of the Act on the Protection of Children and Juveniles.
A was indicted for entering classrooms at an elementary school in Eumseong-gun, North Chungcheong Province, on June 22, 2024, while attending a local community festival, and touching the bodies of three students, including a girl identified as B.
Investigations revealed that A molested the students in two separate classrooms in front of other elementary school children.
Although A denied the charges, claiming he was not even at the elementary school on that day, the court rejected his argument, noting that he was apprehended at the scene by police who had been dispatched following a report from the parents of student B.
Presiding Judge Kim stated, "The defendant molested young students inside an elementary school, a place where children should be most protected, and no recovery for the victims has been made," adding, "However, we have taken into account that the defendant suffers from a brain lesion, and it appears that his disability, including cognitive decline, partially influenced the crime."
(Photo: Yonhap News)