Soldier Drives Military Vehicle and Deserts... "To Meet My Girlfriend"

Sentenced to a 3 Million Won Fine for Unauthorized Departure and Forgery of Official Documents

An Army driver was confirmed to have left the base in a military vehicle to meet his girlfriend during duty and was sentenced to a fine after discharge.

The photo is unrelated to the article content. [Photo by Moon Honam]

According to Yonhap News on the 17th, the Gwangju District Court Criminal Division 6 (Presiding Judge Kim Ji-yeon) announced that A (22), who was indicted on charges of unauthorized absence and forgery of official documents, was sentenced to a fine of 3 million won.

A was serving in the Army Headquarters in Gyeryong-si, Chungnam, in 2022 when he drove a military vehicle to leave the base to meet his girlfriend living in Incheon.

It is known that he drove a total of 395 km round trip to his girlfriend’s residence and returned about 11 hours later.

Additionally, A secretly took the vehicle key to use the military vehicle and wrote "company dinner trip" on the off-base travel permit presented to the military police battalion sentry when leaving the base, according to the investigation.

The court stated, "Although the crimes of unauthorized absence and forgery of official documents are serious, the defendant’s superiors during military service have pleaded for leniency," adding, "As a young adult starting his career, a prison sentence (with probation) could hinder his employment and normal social life, so it was deemed too harsh," explaining the sentencing decision.

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