20s Fined for Discarding Election Flyers Found in Office-tel Mailbox

Court: "Election fairness and election management efficiency were compromised"

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo Byung-don] A man in his 20s who was prosecuted for disposing of election promotional materials meant for other residents has been sentenced to a fine.

On the 13th, the Criminal Division 11 of the Seoul Southern District Court (Presiding Judge Sung Bo-gi) announced that it sentenced Mr. A (23), who was indicted for violating the Public Official Election Act, to a fine of 3 million won.

Earlier, Mr. A was charged with disposing of voting guides and other materials for the April 7 Seoul mayoral by-election, which had been placed in the mailbox of an officetel in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, by discarding them at an outdoor recycling disposal site on March 29.

In court, Mr. A's side argued, "While assisting with management duties, Mr. A collected and disposed of the guides and promotional materials in the mailbox under his father's instructions, but he did not realize that the election public notice was included."

However, the court dismissed this, stating, "The envelope of the election public notice in this case clearly states 'Yeongdeungpo District Election Commission' in the sender field, and the recipient field contains the name and address of each voter," adding, "In the upper left corner of the front of the envelope, there is a large, bold inscription saying 'Election Public Notice.'"

It further mentioned, "Within a separately shaded background, there is red text printed stating, 'If concealed, damaged, or taken without permission, you will be punished according to the Public Official Election Act or related laws.'"

Accordingly, the court judged, "Considering the size and wording of the election public notice, the defendant could have at least implicitly recognized that the election public notice was related to the Seoul mayoral by-election mail and should not have been arbitrarily discarded," and added, "The defendant's guilt is not light as it undermines voters' right to know, the fairness of the election, and the efficiency of election management."

However, the court explained the sentencing by stating, "It appears that the defendant committed the act impulsively while assisting with officetel management duties rather than with the intent to influence the election results," and "The degree of infringement on election freedom is relatively minor."

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