An Ambulance Operating Like a Taxi, Carrying Idol Singers... Caught Driving Without a License

Transported to celebrity event venues and received payment
Unlicensed driving in unauthorized areas as well

A driver who used a private ambulance as a vehicle for a celebrity event and operated it without permission in unauthorized areas was sentenced to imprisonment and fined.

Mr. A (44) transported singer Mr. C, a former member of an idol group, in an ambulance from Ilsan to an event venue in Seongdong-gu, Seoul, around 7 p.m. on March 16, 2018, at the request of event agency employee Mr. B.

At the time, entertainment company official Mr. D reportedly suggested to Mr. B that "using a private ambulance would allow faster travel by avoiding traffic congestion." Mr. D also directly gave Mr. B Mr. A’s phone number.

Mr. A received 300,000 won as payment for transporting Mr. C, and the event agency to which Mr. B belonged covered the ambulance usage fee.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

From January 2021 to February 2022, Mr. A was also indicted on charges of operating the ambulance 19 times in unauthorized areas without permission and collecting a total of 5.39 million won in transport fees. Furthermore, it was discovered that he drove the ambulance without a license 23 times from August 2021 to March 2022.

Subsequently, Mr. A was prosecuted for violating the Emergency Medical Services Act and the Road Traffic Act (unlicensed driving). On the 15th, the Incheon District Court Criminal Division 5 (Presiding Judge Hong Jun-seo) announced that Mr. A was sentenced to 1 year and 6 months in prison and fined 2 million won.

Presiding Judge Hong stated, “The defendant committed unlicensed driving again during the probation period, was aware of the license cancellation, yet consistently gave unconvincing excuses. Considering the defendant’s prior traffic-related offenses, a strict sentence with imprisonment is necessary.”

However, he explained the sentencing rationale by saying, “The violation of the Emergency Medical Services Act due to using the ambulance for purposes other than intended is a concurrent offense with the Road Traffic Act violation under the latter part of Article 37 of the Criminal Act, so the sentence was determined considering fairness when ruling simultaneously.”

Meanwhile, the prosecution did not refer Mr. C and two others, who conspired with Mr. A to use the private ambulance for other purposes, to a formal trial but requested a summary order from the court.

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