A man in his 30s who posted a false message in 2023 in an online community saying he would "kill someone at Sillim Station" was ordered on the 19th by a court in the first trial to pay 43.7 million won in damages to the state. It is the first ruling recognizing civil liability for damages for a person who posted a murder notice.
On the 19th, Judge Jeong Jeong-min of the Seoul Central District Court Civil Division 93, in the first civil trial of the government's damages suit against Choi (31), the poster of the "Sillim Station Exit 2 murder notice," ruled in favor of the government and sentenced, "Choi shall pay the Republic of Korea 43,701,434 won and delay interest."
On Jul. 26, 2023, Choi posted in an online community, "I am standing in front of Exit 2 of Sillim Station with a knife. From now on I will kill people." Police, having received a report on the matter, deployed about 20 officers to the scene. Choi was arrested and indicted on charges of obstructing police duties.
Five days before Choi wrote the post, in Sillim-dong, Gwanak-gu, Seoul, a rampage with a weapon by Jo Seon (34) occurred at Sillim Station, leaving one person dead and three injured. After that, numerous murder notices were posted online, prompting the police to carry out a concentrated crackdown.
The Ministry of Justice filed a damages suit, saying that due to Choi's false post, from the 112 emergency call to the arrest, a total of 703 police personnel, including the Korean National Police Agency cyber investigation team and the riot police, were mobilized, and 43,701,434 won was spent on police officers' allowances and fuel costs for mobilized vehicles.
Meanwhile, in a separate trial in which Choi was arrested and indicted on charges of obstructing police duties by threats and by deception, a one-year prison sentence with two years of probation was finalized in Dec. last year.