A former Chungju City civil servant, who was put on trial on charges of repeatedly raping a minor, was given a suspended prison sentence again on appeal.
The Criminal Division 1 of the Incheon Panel of the Seoul High Court (Presiding Judge Jeong Seung-gyu) on the 21st sentenced A, 56, who was indicted and detained on charges of violating the Act on the Protection of Children and Youth against Sex Offenses (sexual intercourse by deception or abuse of authority), to three years in prison, suspended for five years, the same as the first trial.
Prosecutors appealed, saying the first-trial sentence was excessively lenient.
The appellate court said, "The sentencing factors the prosecutor argues were already sufficiently considered in the lower court's process of determining the sentence," adding, "There are no new circumstances after the lower court's ruling that would warrant changing the sentence."
A, a civil servant affiliated with the Chungju City Government, was brought to trial on charges of raping a minor, B, nine times and sexually abusing her at an apartment in Bucheon, Gyeonggi, in February to March last year.
The investigation found that A approached B through a chat app, lied about age, and made B call A "father."
After receiving a police notice of the start of an investigation, the Chungju City Government relieved A of duty and later dismissed A through a disciplinary committee.