Jo Joo-bin's Two Faces... Volunteering at Orphanages on Weekends and Emphasizing Prevention of Sexual Violence on Campus

Active Volunteer Group Activities
Served as Reporter and Editor-in-Chief at School Newspaper

SBS '8 News' has disclosed the personal information of Jo Joo-bin, the key suspect in the 'Telegram Nth Room' case. / Photo by SBS Broadcast Capture

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Seung-gon, Intern Reporter Kang Joo-hee] The so-called 'Doctor,' who threatened women including minors to obtain sadistic sexual exploitation videos and distributed them in Telegram chat rooms, has been identified as Jo Joo-bin (25), who lives in Incheon. Meanwhile, testimonies have emerged that he was actively involved in a volunteer organization until recently, adding to the shock.

According to the Chosun Ilbo on the 23rd, Jo threatened women, ordered and filmed various sadistic acts including sexual assault, and distributed them in chat rooms, yet he was actively participating in volunteer activities until just three months ago.

The volunteer organization reported that Jo first visited the group in October 2017, stating he was "a student attending a local technical college" and that he "wanted to do volunteer work after military discharge."

He volunteered for five months until March of the following year, and from March to December last year, he was involved in planning volunteer activities and served as a deputy team leader, directly managing year-end events.

The volunteer organization said, "Upon learning that the suspect in the 'Doctor's Room' case is named Jo Joo-bin, we were concerned that there might be victims among children in the orphanage, so we reported directly to the police on the 23rd."

Jo Joo-bin (25), who was arrested on charges of threatening women to film sexual exploitation materials and distributing them on the mobile messenger Telegram, is seen leaving the courtroom after the warrant hearing at the Seoul Central District Court in Seocho-dong, Seoul on the afternoon of the 19th. Photo by Yonhap News

Meanwhile, the school newspaper featured an article introducing that a 'Sexual Violence Prevention Lecture' was held at the school in cooperation with the local police station. In an article written by Jo Joo-bin titled 'Safe Technical College - The School's Relentless Efforts for Student Safety,' it is stated that "lectures were held to prevent school violence and sexual violence, and the school is making great efforts to ensure safety on campus."

Jo is known to have started committing sexual exploitation crimes by creating the 'Doctor's Room' on Telegram in September 2019. He threatened women including minors to produce videos and sold them in secret Telegram chat rooms for money. To evade police investigations, he only accepted cryptocurrency as payment.

He operated the chat rooms in three tiers according to severity, charging entrance fees of approximately 200,000 won, 700,000 won, and 1,500,000 won worth of cryptocurrency respectively. Some women were forced to write words like 'slave' and 'doctor' on their bodies and post nude photos, indicating the cruelty of Jo's crimes.

Given these circumstances, calls for severe punishment of Jo are growing louder. As of 7 a.m. today (the 24th), a Blue House petition demanding his harsh punishment has garnered 2,495,636 signatures.

The petitioner stated, "Put the perpetrator who caused shame to others and drove young students into hell on the photo line. Do not let him cover his face with a hat or mask under any circumstances."

They continued, "There were 250,000 simultaneous viewers. He threatened victims to perform sexual acts in front of their families," and appealed, "Sound the alarm on the distorted sexual perceptions of Korean men."

Meanwhile, the police will hold a personal information disclosure review committee this afternoon (the 24th) to decide whether to disclose Jo's real name, face, age, and other personal information. The disclosure decision will be made by a review committee composed of three internal police members and four external members. If Jo's personal information is disclosed, it will be the first case for a sexual violence crime.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.