"Why Not Share Pension Profits?"... 50s Man Blocks Room Keyhole with Adhesive, Receives Suspended Prison Sentence

Blocked Keyhole with Adhesive
Power Cut and Door Lock Card Key Disabled
Court Sentences Suspended Prison Term

Photo by Yonhap News Agency

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Kim Nayeon] A man in his 50s who obstructed business by blocking the keyholes of pension rooms with adhesive after disputes over profit distribution during the purchase and operation of a pension was sentenced to a suspended prison term.

The Chuncheon District Court Criminal Division 1 (Presiding Judge Kim Cheongmi) announced on the 16th that it dismissed the appeal filed by A (56), who was indicted for violating the Labor Standards Act and obstructing business, and the prosecution, and sentenced him to 4 months in prison with a 2-year suspension, the same as the original sentence.

A purchased a pension in Pyeongchang-gun, Gangwon Province, from the victim B in November 2018 and transferred ownership, but since he could not pay part of the purchase price, he entrusted B with operating the pension until the full payment was made.

On January 14, 2020, dissatisfied that B did not share the pension operating profits, A cut off the electricity to the pension, deregistered the master card keys for the door locks of 16 guest rooms, and blocked the keyholes with adhesive.

Regarding this, he denied the charges, stating, "I only cut off electricity to vacant rooms unrelated to pension business, there were no guests at the time, and even if the electricity was cut, internet and phone services were available, so there was no obstruction to reservation work or pension business."

However, the first trial court judged that blocking the keyholes posed a risk of obstructing pension business. It also ruled that A must have been aware of the risk of business obstruction and sentenced him to imprisonment with suspension.

Subsequently, A appealed, claiming the sentence was too harsh, but the appellate court again recognized the obstruction of business.

The court explained, "The crime method and content, such as cutting off electricity to the pension and blocking parts of the keyholes of some rooms with adhesive, show that the crime is of poor quality," and added, "The defendant denies the crime, and there is no evidence that he was forgiven by the victim or that the damage was restored," thus upholding the original sentence.

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