Former Coach Jo Jae-beom Accused of Sexual Assault on Student, Supreme Court Verdict... Will Increased Sentence Be Confirmed?

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Baek Kyunghwan] The Supreme Court is set to deliver a ruling on former short track national team coach Jo Jaebeom, who was convicted of sexually assaulting an athlete and received a heavy sentence in the appellate court.

On the 10th, the Supreme Court's 2nd Division (Presiding Justice Cheon Daeyeop) will hold a sentencing hearing for Jo, who was indicted on charges of violating the Act on the Protection of Children and Juveniles from Sexual Abuse.

Jo was prosecuted for allegedly sexually assaulting, forcibly molesting, and threatening athlete Shim 29 times from 2014 to 2017. Some of the offenses occurred while Shim was a minor, leading the prosecution to apply charges under the Act on the Protection of Children and Juveniles from Sexual Abuse.

The first trial found the testimony based on Shim's training diary to be credible and sentenced Jo to 10 years and 6 months in prison. The court pointed out, "The defendant maintained a strict training method within the hierarchical relationship between coach and athlete, frequently monitoring the victim's status, and committed the crimes over several years while psychologically dominating the victim."

The appellate court also stated, "Although there was suspicion about the credibility of the testimony as it became more detailed over time, the victim's statements were corroborated by other objective evidence such as the training diary and text messages, making it difficult to consider the earlier testimony as newly retracted."

Furthermore, the sentence was increased. Regarding the claim that the relationship was consensual, the court noted that the victim firmly denied it and that no additional evidence was submitted. The court ruled, "Jo's claim can be seen as a form of secondary victimization against the victim," and sentenced him to 13 years in prison.

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