Prosecutors suspend indictment of Korean officer who posted death-scene photos online
In short
The Ansan branch of the Suwon prosecutors' office has decided not to put on trial a Gwangmyeong Police Station officer who posted photos from a death scene on social media with captions such as "Anyone want to guess what this is?". The officer, identified only as A, was investigated for leaking official secrets and received a suspension of indictment, a disposition that recognises the charge but does not send the suspect to trial. Prosecutors cited a citizens' committee's majority opinion and the officer's disciplinary suspension.
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A police officer who posted photos from a death scene on his social media alongside captions described as inappropriate has received a suspension of indictment, legal circles said on Oct. 9. Criminal Division 1 of the Suwon prosecutors' Ansan branch, headed by chief prosecutor Ryu Ju-tae (류주태), made the decision on an officer with the rank of gyeongwi (경위) from Gwangmyeong Police Station, identified only as A, who was accused of leaking official secrets. Newsis and Dong-A Ilbo said the decision was made late last month; Yonhap said it was made recently. The reports described the Suwon office as the former Suwon District Prosecutors' Office, now the Suwon District Public Prosecution Office (수원지방공소청). [ 2 , 3 , 4 ]
A suspension of indictment is a disposition in which the charge is recognised but the suspect is not sent to trial after other circumstances are considered, the reports explained. Yonhap said those circumstances include the motive, whether the suspect shows remorse and any settlement. [ 2 , 3 , 4 ]
In February, A attended a death scene, took photos and posted them on his social media with captions including "Anyone want to guess what this is?" and that he should not eat seonji (선지) any more. Yonhap reported the scene was in Gwangmyeong, Gyeonggi Province, on Feb. 6, and described the captions as appearing to mock the deceased. He deleted the post the same day, but screenshots spread and caused controversy. [ 2 , 3 , 4 ]
The chief of Gwangmyeong Police Station then requested an investigation. Ansan Sangnok Police Station, which handled the case, found that two of the four photos posted were problematic: one showing the scene and one showing a screen of the automated fingerprint identification system (AFIS). Newsis and Dong-A Ilbo said the AFIS screen showed the fingerprint of a person presumed to be the deceased. The police referred the case to prosecutors. [ 2 , 3 , 4 ]
A told investigators he had posted to show the hardship of officers at the scene, Newsis and Dong-A Ilbo reported. Yonhap quoted him as saying he posted the photos because he felt sorry that officers were suffering in the cold. [ 2 , 3 , 4 ]
Prosecutors asked a citizens' committee for its opinion on whether to indict, and a majority favoured a suspension of indictment. Prosecutors said they took that opinion into account along with the fact that A had received a disciplinary suspension. Yonhap reported the suspension was for three months and that prosecutors also considered that A had admitted the charge and expressed remorse. [ 2 , 3 , 4 ]
Why it matters
The case shows how prosecutors handled a police officer's online conduct at a death scene, with the decision reached through a citizens' committee review rather than a trial. The officer had already received a disciplinary suspension from the police, which prosecutors counted in deciding not to indict.
Key facts
- Criminal Division 1 of the Suwon prosecutors' Ansan branch, headed by chief prosecutor Ryu Ju-tae (류주태), suspended the indictment of a Gwangmyeong Police Station officer with the rank of gyeongwi (경위), identified as A, on a charge of leaking official secrets. [ 2 , 3 , 4 ]
- Newsis and Dong-A Ilbo reported the decision was made late last month; Yonhap said it was made recently. [ 2 , 3 , 4 ]
- In February, A attended a death scene, photographed it and posted the photos on his social media with captions including "Anyone want to guess what this is?" and that he should not eat seonji (선지) any more. [ 2 , 3 , 4 ]
- Yonhap reported the scene was in Gwangmyeong, Gyeonggi Province, on Feb. 6. [ 4 ]
- A deleted the post the same day, but screenshots spread and caused controversy. [ 2 , 3 , 4 ]
- Ansan Sangnok Police Station, which investigated at the request of the Gwangmyeong police chief, found two of the four photos problematic: one showing the scene and one showing an automated fingerprint identification system (AFIS) screen. [ 2 , 3 , 4 ]
- Prosecutors asked a citizens' committee whether to indict, and a majority favoured suspending the indictment. [ 2 , 3 , 4 ]
- Yonhap reported A had received a three-month suspension from the police and had admitted the charge and expressed remorse. [ 4 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- The Ansan branch of the Suwon prosecutors' office suspended the indictment of a Gwangmyeong Police Station officer, identified as A, who was accused of leaking official secrets. [ 2 , 3 , 4 ]
- The officer posted photos from a death scene on his social media in February with captions including "Anyone want to guess what this is?" and a remark about not eating seonji (선지). [ 2 , 3 , 4 ]
- The post was deleted the same day but screenshots spread, and the Gwangmyeong police chief requested an investigation. [ 2 , 3 , 4 ]
- Ansan Sangnok Police Station found two of the four posted photos problematic, including one showing the scene and one showing an AFIS screen, and referred the case to prosecutors. [ 2 , 3 , 4 ]
- A majority of a citizens' committee consulted by prosecutors favoured suspending the indictment. [ 2 , 3 , 4 ]
- Prosecutors took into account that the officer had been given a disciplinary suspension. [ 2 , 3 , 4 ]
Still unclear
- When exactly the decision was made. Newsis and Dong-A Ilbo say late last month; Yonhap says only recently.
- The length of the officer's disciplinary suspension. Only Yonhap gives it as three months; Newsis and Dong-A Ilbo say only that he was suspended.
- Whether the AFIS screen photo showed the fingerprint of the presumed deceased. Newsis and Dong-A Ilbo say it did; Yonhap says only that it showed an AFIS screen.
What local media are saying
Timeline, local time
- Officer A attends a death scene in Gwangmyeong, Gyeonggi Province, and posts photos with captions on his social media; the post is deleted the same day. [ 4 ]
- Newsis reports the suspension of indictment, made late last month according to legal circles. [ 2 ]
- Dong-A Ilbo publishes the same report. [ 3 ]
- Yonhap reports the decision, adding the three-month suspension and the officer's admission and remorse. [ 4 ]