Actor O Yeong-su, who had been sent to trial on charges of forcibly molesting a woman and received a suspended prison sentence in the first trial, was acquitted on appeal.
On the 11th, the Criminal Appellate Division 6-1 of the Suwon District Court (Presiding Judges Gwak Hyeong-seop, Kim Eun-jeong, and Kang Hee-gyeong) overturned the lower court and delivered a not-guilty verdict in the appellate sentencing hearing for O, who was indicted on charges of forcible molestation.
The court said, "Six months after the timing of the alleged forcible molestation, the victim wrote a diary implying that the defendant had made inappropriate remarks and behavior, and the victim also received counseling at a sexual violence counseling center and told several colleagues about this," adding, "While it is highly possible the defendant engaged in inappropriate remarks and behavior toward the victim, whether the defendant committed forcible molestation as specified in the indictment is open to reasonable doubt, and when there is doubt, the judgment must favor the defendant, so a guilty verdict cannot be rendered."
Immediately after the verdict, O told reporters, "I pay my respects and express my gratitude to the court for its wise ruling."
O was indicted on charges of two instances of forcible molestation, including hugging victim A while walking on a trail in Daegu in mid-2017 and kissing A on the cheek in front of A's residence. O denied the charges, but the first-instance court found O guilty and sentenced O to eight months in prison, suspended for two years. Both O's side and the prosecutors appealed, and the appellate trial proceeded.
O, who drew attention as the "gganbu grandfather" in the Netflix drama "Squid Game," became the first Korean actor to win best supporting actor in the TV category at the Golden Globes in Jan. 2022.