'Being Alive Is a Miracle'... Korean YouTuber Robbed and Assaulted Twice in One Day During Trip

"They are kids carrying knives and shooting guns; being alive is considered lucky."

A Korean travel YouTuber shared a story about being robbed and assaulted twice in one day in South Africa, saying this.

[Photo by 'Zero Sugar' YouTube capture]

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Travel YouTuber ‘ZeroSugar’ (Lee Gyehun) revealed his experience during a trip in a video titled 'I was beaten for 2 hours in South Africa' last month. In the video, ZeroSugar appeared with bruises around his eyes and severely swollen lips. He said, "I was robbed twice by taxi robbers. They took everything?my phone (iPhone 13 Pro), credit cards, Apple Watch, outerwear, ring, and shoes," and added, "Still, I’m just glad I came back healthy."

ZeroSugar explained that the first incident happened while he was returning to his accommodation after spending a long time outside. While trying to catch an Uber, a white man suggested sharing a taxi if their directions were similar, and ZeroSugar agreed. However, as soon as he got into the taxi, four black men followed and started indiscriminately assaulting him. During the struggle, ZeroSugar fought back but sustained injuries and had his phone and credit cards stolen. Afterwards, they threw him out on a remote road and fled.

Beaten and battered, ZeroSugar tried to catch another taxi while walking. At that moment, a car stopped, and the driver welcomed him with open arms, offering a ride. Exhausted and confused, ZeroSugar got in without much suspicion, but the second assault began there. He said, "I was beaten even harder for two hours," and "They took all my outerwear, hat, shoes, Apple Watch, and ring."

After being beaten twice by robbers, he encountered another taxi but ran away. Later, he hid somewhere and waited until sunrise, then asked for help from someone leaving a mansion and barely managed to return to his accommodation. ZeroSugar said a local who heard about his situation told him, "You should never have fought back. They carry knives and shoot guns; you almost died. The fact that it happened twice means you’re really lucky to be alive."

As of the 7th, the video posted by ZeroSugar has recorded 690,000 views. Netizens responded with comments like "Glad you survived," and "Unlike Korea, it’s surprisingly dangerous to be out at night abroad." A netizen who has lived overseas for a long time expressed concern, saying, "I’ve seen many young Koreans traveling abroad experience such incidents," and "Safe public security like Korea’s is not normal or guaranteed; globally, it’s rather abnormal."

In response to comments criticizing his careless behavior, ZeroSugar replied, "Thank you for your kind words. This unfortunate incident happened because I traveled carelessly, so it’s all my responsibility. I will definitely travel safely."

South Africa, with a population of about 60 million, is known as one of the countries with a high violent crime rate, with around 20,000 murders annually. In July last year, the American security company ADT ranked South Africa as the most dangerous vacation spot.

Our Ministry of Foreign Affairs also designated South Africa as one of the countries under a ‘special travel advisory’ ahead of the year-end and New Year holiday season last November. The special travel advisory is issued for urgent high-risk areas in the short term and corresponds to travel alert level 2 (travel caution) to level 3 (departure recommendation). At that time, the Ministry posted notices about South Africa twice, urging travelers to "always stay alert, avoid becoming a target of crime by not using mobile phones while walking outdoors, and always follow safety guidelines."

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