President Lee: "How Could People Be So Heartless?"... Strict Measures Against Secondary Harm in Social Disasters

President Lee Urges Stern Response on Social Media
Following Arrest of Man in His 50s for Over 3,000 False Posts on Social Disasters

On May 31, President Lee Jaemyung once again called on law enforcement agencies to respond strictly in connection with the arrest of a man in his 50s who posted over 3,000 false posts regarding the Sewol Ferry disaster, the Itaewon tragedy, and the Jeju Air passenger plane accident.

Yonhap News Agency

On this day, President Lee shared a related news report on X (formerly Twitter), writing, "This is the third arrest for posting false comments. Such inhumane behavior is simply outrageous. Why are people doing this?" He added, "Imagine if your own family suffered such a tragedy. Shouldn't we try to put ourselves in their shoes?" He further stated, "We will continue to investigate thoroughly and take stern action going forward."

The National Office of Investigation at the National Police Agency announced that on this day, a man in his 50s, identified as Mr. A, was arrested on charges of repeatedly posting false claims and insulting content about major social disasters. Mr. A is accused of posting more than 3,000 false articles related to the Sewol Ferry disaster, the Itaewon tragedy, and the Jeju Air passenger plane accident on major domestic online communities and platforms from 2022 to this year.

According to the police, Mr. A attached photos related to these disasters and repeatedly posted statements such as: "The Sewol Ferry disaster was a staged national fraud," "The passenger plane accident was a scam exploiting the dead," and "The Itaewon tragedy was a poorly made film using dummies to fake corpses." The police have determined that these posts went beyond expressing opinions and constituted a serious secondary offense by insulting and defaming the victims' families.

This arrest marks the third case in which a suspect has been detained for secondary offenses related to major social disasters since the launch of the Secondary Offense Crime Investigation Division at the National Office of Investigation. This division was established in July last year after President Lee instructed the creation of a dedicated team to respond to malicious comments and the dissemination of false information targeting the families of social disaster victims.

Previously, on May 30, after a suspect was arrested for insulting victims and families of the Sewol Ferry disaster and the Itaewon tragedy, President Lee stated, "Fake news and insulting comments that show such inhumane disregard deserve severe punishment," and announced, "A dedicated police team will respond strictly to fake news and secondary victimization comments."

The police plan to uphold a zero-tolerance policy and make arrests as a principle for malicious posters who mock social disasters or repeatedly spread false information in the future.

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