Digital Gyodoso Season 1 Operator Sent to Prosecution Today... Charged with Defamation of 156 People and Others

Police Also Tracking Operators of Digital Gyodoso Season 2

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Jung-yoon] The first operator of Digital Prison, who was caught after publicly revealing the personal information of sex offenders, was handed over to the prosecution on the 15th.

The Daegu Metropolitan Police Agency announced that it had transferred A, who was arrested on charges of defamation under the Act on Promotion of Information and Communications Network Utilization and Information Protection, violation of the Act on the Protection of Children and Juveniles from Sexual Abuse, and violation of the Personal Information Protection Act, to the prosecution on the morning of the same day.

A is accused of creating Digital Prison and Instagram accounts from March this year and posting personal information and court sentencing results related to suspects and persons involved in digital sex crimes, murder, child abuse, and other cases. The police concluded that among the 176 people whose personal information was posted without permission (246 posts), there is defamation and other charges against 156 people (218 posts), excluding those who disclosed their own personal information.

According to the police investigation, A initially created the Instagram account 'nbunbang' to inform the public about the arrest of Jo Joo-bin, the operator of the Telegram 'Doctor's Room.' As social interest in digital sex crimes grew and followers increased rapidly, A posted personal information about other victims based on news searches and tips. However, when the Instagram account was deleted due to reports from victims, A opened a new account and started operating Digital Prison to prevent others from deleting posts.

A used Telegram, KakaoTalk, and the Digital Prison tip board to receive tips and obtained additional information through social media (SNS) searches based on already secured personal information.

The police have been investigating Digital Prison since May and, through international cooperation with Interpol, arrested A in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, and forcibly brought him back to Korea on the 7th of this month. Afterwards, the police applied for an arrest warrant for A, and Judge Kang Kyung-ho of the Daegu District Court, in charge of warrants, issued the warrant citing concerns over evidence destruction and flight risk.

Digital Prison once received public support due to the perceived leniency in investigation and punishment of sex offenders, but it began to face criticism for creating innocent victims. Victims include a mixed martial artist and YouTuber, a university professor, and the bereaved family of a university student who expressed grievances over the personal information disclosure by Digital Prison and took extreme measures. Professor Lee Geon-su of Baekseok University’s Department of Police Science said, "Although it was supported in the past, Digital Prison’s behavior is private punishment rather than judicial punishment and is a criminal act that causes further victims due to incorrect information."

Meanwhile, the police are also investigating the second operator of Digital Prison. Although Digital Prison was shut down on the 8th of last month, the second operator resumed site operations three days later. However, after A was repatriated, the site was closed again, and the second operator is currently in hiding. The police are also investigating the second operator as the operator or related party of 'Juhonggeulssi,' which discloses personal information of Telegram sexual exploitation offenders.

A police official stated, "Even after the case was transferred, we plan to continue investigating other criminal acts committed by A, and we will thoroughly investigate the circumstances of personal information collection and provision by those who provided information."

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