Senior Soldier Who Rubbed Bare Buttocks on Junior's Face Receives Suspended Prison Sentence

Imprisonment for 6 Months with 1-Year Probation for Soldier and Others on Charges of Forced Indecent Assault
Employment Restriction and Mandatory Treatment Lectures Ordered

A senior soldier who forcibly molested a junior soldier by rubbing his bare buttocks on the junior's face and biting the junior's buttocks was sentenced to a suspended prison term, becoming a convicted offender.

The Chuncheon District Court Wonju Branch, 1st Criminal Division (Presiding Judge Lee Su-woong) sentenced A (22), who was charged with forcible molestation of a soldier, to six months in prison with a one-year suspension. He was also ordered to attend 40 hours of sexual violence treatment lectures and was banned from employment at institutions related to children, adolescents, and the disabled for three years each.

A was accused of rubbing his bare buttocks on the face and upper body of a sitting junior soldier in a barracks of an army unit in Gangwon Province in May last year. Two months later, in July, he was also charged with touching and biting the buttocks of a junior soldier who was lying face down.

The senior soldier claimed, "I was just playing a prank by farting, and my buttocks only touched the junior soldier," denying any intent to molest.

However, the court rejected A’s claim, stating, "Even if it was a prank involving farting, exposing one’s buttocks completely and pressing them against another person’s face, as well as biting the buttocks, are acts that cause sexual discomfort or disgust." The court pointed out, "The defendant’s actions objectively constitute acts that cause sexual discomfort or disgust to the general public," and added, "From the defendant’s perspective, it might have been easy to tease or joke around, but from the junior soldier’s perspective, it cannot be said that they had such a close relationship to tolerate this." The court also noted, "However, considering that the defendant reflected on his actions, is a first-time offender, and reached an amicable agreement with the victim who does not wish for punishment."

Sexual crimes in the military are not a new issue. Last year, a Marine Corps soldier who slapped the buttocks of a junior soldier wearing only underwear and pinched the nipple of a junior soldier saluting was sentenced to one year in prison with a two-year suspension.

According to the Ministry of National Defense data from 2022, the number of sexual crime offenders in the Army, Navy, and Air Force increased from 337 in 2019 to 465 in 2020, 699 in 2021, and 544 in 2022, marking a 61.4% increase over three years. The number of counseling cases reported to dedicated sexual violence prevention and response organizations within the military also surged from just 90 cases across the Army, Navy, and Air Force in 2019 to 131 in 2020, 566 in 2021, and 1,329 in 2022.

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