A man in his 20s who raped a minor and produced sexual exploitation materials had his sentence reduced on appeal to a suspended prison term and was released. In the first trial, he was sentenced to three years in prison.
According to legal sources on the 25th, the Criminal Division 1 of the Changwon Panel of the Busan High Court (Presiding High Court Judge Park Kwang-seo) overturned the lower court's sentence of imprisonment for A, 25, who was indicted on charges including statutory rape of a minor, and sentenced A to three years in prison, suspended for five years. However, it upheld the lower court's orders for 40 hours of sexual violence treatment lectures and a five-year employment restriction at institutions related to children, adolescents, and persons with disabilities.
A was indicted on charges including having sexual intercourse with B, a 14-year-old girl, at A's home in Uichang-gu, Changwon, South Gyeongsang, in July last year. A is also accused of filming the rape of B on a mobile phone and producing sexual exploitation materials by receiving, on multiple occasions, specific body part photos and other images from B.
In the first trial, the court said, "Minors are individuals who need to form a sound sexual value system, and their sexual self-determination rights require special protection, so the law sets heavier sentences than for sex crimes against adults," and added, "Taking into account that the victim does not want punishment and that 20 million won was deposited with the court, we determined the sentence," and sentenced A to three years in prison. However, A appealed, arguing the sentence was unduly heavy.
The appellate court said, "A committed the crime against a child or adolescent whose perceptions and values about sex are not properly formed in order to satisfy sexual desire, which reflects poor culpability, and the crime of producing sexual exploitation materials causes significant social harm. There is also a risk that the sexual exploitation materials could be distributed to an unspecified large number of people, so there is a need for stern punishment."
However, the court explained its sentencing rationale, stating, "A did not use physical force during the commission of the crime, provided a set amount of settlement money to the victim and the legal representative and promised additional payment, appears to have had time for reflection while being detained for about eight months, and the victim's side expressed that they do not want punishment."