Supreme Court: "Fining Defendant for 'Special Theft' Is Illegal"

Yoon Prosecutor General's Emergency Appeal Accepted

Supreme Court
[Photo by Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Junyi Park] The Supreme Court overturned a ruling that sentenced defendants accused of special theft, which does not have a fine as a statutory penalty, to fines.

According to the legal community on the 18th, the Supreme Court's 3rd Division (Presiding Justice Kim Jae-hyung) accepted the prosecution's extraordinary appeal against soldiers A and B, who were indicted on charges of special theft, and overturned the original ruling that imposed fines.

The court stated, "This case cannot be punished through a summary order, so the original court should have adjudicated through a trial procedure," adding, "Imposing fines, which are not prescribed as a statutory penalty for special theft, and punishing through a summary order constitutes a violation of the law."

Article 331 of the Criminal Act (Special Theft) stipulates that when two or more persons jointly commit theft, they shall be punished by imprisonment for not less than one year and not more than ten years. Although fines are not included as a statutory penalty, the original military court sentenced them to fines through a summary order.

Previously, A and B were brought to trial on charges of jointly stealing another person's property. In 2019, the military court sentenced them to fines of 1.5 million won and 1 million won respectively through a summary order. After the period for requesting a formal trial passed, the fines became final.

However, Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-yeol filed an extraordinary appeal, arguing that the original ruling imposing fines was unjust. An extraordinary appeal is an emergency relief system in criminal proceedings where the Prosecutor General files an appeal to the Supreme Court after a judgment is finalized if a violation of the law is discovered.

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