"Claimed to Take Quarantine Taxi" Lie... Prison Sentence Requested for Pastor's Wife, Korea's First Omicron Case

The prosecution requested an 8-month prison sentence for Ms. A, the wife of a pastor at a church in Incheon, who was indicted for violating the Infectious Disease Prevention and Control Act, during the sentencing hearing held the previous day under the presiding of Judge Lee Haebin of the Incheon District Court Criminal Division 7. The photo is not directly related. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Sumi] The prosecution has requested a prison sentence for the wife of a pastor who lied to quarantine authorities after being infected with the COVID-19 Omicron variant for the first time in South Korea.

According to the legal community on the 1st, the prosecution requested an 8-month prison sentence for A, the wife of a pastor from a church in Incheon, who was indicted for violating the Infectious Disease Prevention and Control Act, at the sentencing hearing held yesterday under Judge Lee Haebin of the Incheon District Court Criminal Division 7.

A was indicted without detention on March 24 for spreading the infection by lying during the initial epidemiological investigation after testing positive for COVID-19 on November 25 last year.

At that time, A had attended a Christian-related academic seminar held in Nigeria with her husband and returned to Korea through Incheon Airport. She took a ride home in an acquaintance B’s car but falsely stated during the epidemiological investigation after testing positive that she had used a quarantine taxi.

Subsequently, the couple was confirmed as the first domestic Omicron variant cases on December 1 last year. However, due to A’s false statement, acquaintance B, who was excluded from close contact tracing, was free to go out for several days. Following this, B’s wife and mother-in-law visited a large church in Michuhol-gu, which eventually led to a mass infection.

In response, Michuhol-gu reported A to the police in December last year, stating that the delay in epidemiological investigation and quarantine of close contacts caused by A led to the spread of local infections. According to the Infectious Disease Control and Prevention Act, providing false statements during epidemiological investigations conducted by local governments can result in imprisonment of up to two years or a fine of up to 20 million won.

The prosecution stated, "The defendant undermined the quarantine system with false statements after being the first Omicron confirmed case," and added, "Considering that she also said 'no symptoms' during airport quarantine and was fined, this does not appear to be an accidental offense," explaining the reason for the sentence request.

Regarding this, A appealed to the court, saying, "I was very tired and mentally distracted that day and answered incorrectly," and "I have been mentally very distressed because of this case, but I deeply reflect on it and ask for leniency."

Meanwhile, the sentencing hearing for A is scheduled to be held on the 7th of next month.

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