It has come to light that a new civil servant in Gokseong County, South Jeolla Province, suffered sexual assault, but the county concealed the case and neglected victim protection measures, leading to another sexual assault.
According to the results of the "Gokseong County regular audit" released on the 19th, the Board of Audit and Inspection decided to refer former Gokseong County Governor Ryu Geun-gi for investigation on suspicion of covering up a sexual assault case and failing to discipline the perpetrator while in office.
The victim, identified as A, suffered an attempted-rape sexual assault by B, a government employee on a permanent contract, less than a month after being appointed as a probationary civil servant in 2021. Perpetrator B called A, who had been practicing repeatedly to improve work skills, to his home, saying "come over for spaghetti," and committed the crime.
Thinking that "there is nothing to gain from looking bad" to B, who served as a team lead on the job, A reluctantly met him and was victimized, and immediately reported the incident to Gokseong County.
However, the Board of Audit and Inspection concluded that former Governor Ryu, after being briefed, did not report the perpetrator or implement protective measures for the victim, but instead accepted the perpetrator's resignation and instructed that the matter be handled quietly to avoid rumors.
Summoned by the Board of Audit and Inspection, former Governor Ryu acknowledged wrongdoing, saying, "B and I are not close friends; we merely attended the same church in the past," and "It was my first time dealing with such a case, so I did not think it through. It is all my responsibility."
Ryu argued that "I accepted the resignation because I was told A did not want B punished," but the Board of Audit and Inspection pointed out that "even after receiving a report that A had changed their mind and wanted punishment, Ryu gave no instructions."
Following A's report to police, B received a criminal sentence of two years in prison, and A underwent psychiatric treatment for the incident, with about 1 million won in treatment expenditure.
But A's victimization happened again. Gokseong County neglected victim protection measures and returned A to the original department, and A suffered secondary sexual violence from C, another permanent-contract government employee and colleague of B, including abusive language, power abuse and sexual harassment such as "I've been drinking, take me home" and "I miss you, call me three times a week."
It was also found that B's parents came to the workplace and pressed for a settlement, making coercive remarks.
The Board of Audit and Inspection found that Gokseong County's negligent response led to further sexual assault. In 2024, at a branch of the public health medical center, A suffered another attempted-rape sexual assault by a different permanent-contract employee, and the perpetrator is on trial.
The Board of Audit and Inspection pointed to the county's failure to properly protect the victim—such as separation, reassignment, and measures to prevent recurrence—in the earlier case as the cause.
In the sexual assault case that recurred in 2024, a senior Gokseong County official was found to have shifted blame onto A by saying, "How could that happen in an examination room? Wasn't it an environment where you could raise your voice?" and "Why did you let a man into the health branch? You should have been careful."
The Board of Audit and Inspection requested disciplinary action against civil servants involved in the concealment of the sexual assault case and orders to commit corrupt acts, including one dismissal, two demotions, one suspension, and four minor disciplinary actions, and issued notifications or cautions to Gokseong County and the county council.
Separately, the audit also uncovered improper handling in performance evaluation and promotion review (preselection of promotees), overseas travel while on sick leave, lax management of mountain area conversion and restoration costs, and poor management of farmland.
Former Gokseong County Governor Ryu Geun-gi rebutted that "it is not true that I acknowledged mishandling my duties." He argued, "I was briefed that the victim did not want the matter publicized and did not intend to file a criminal complaint against the perpetrator, so I ordered that the perpetrator's resignation be processed as quickly as possible to ensure rapid separation and prevent secondary harm."
Ryu added, "As for the Inspector General who announced audit results that are not factual, I will consider filing a defamation complaint and pursuing legal action."