Civil Servant Falsely Accused as 'Rapist' and Extorted for 30 Million Won... Woman in Her 30s Sentenced to 1 Year in Prison

Charged with False Accusation and Extortion
Filed a False Complaint

A woman in her 30s who extorted a settlement from her boyfriend by falsely accusing him of sexual assault, despite dating with the intention of marriage, has been sentenced to prison in the first trial.

According to Yonhap News Agency on July 5, Judge Kim Hyunji of the Criminal Division 6 of the Jeonju District Court sentenced Ms. A (35), who was indicted on charges including false accusation and extortion, to one year in prison.

Jeonju District Court Exterior

In May 2022, Ms. A discussed marriage with her boyfriend, Mr. B, a civil servant. During the conversation, she declared, "I won't marry you unless you take back all the allowance money you've given your parents so far and bring it as marriage funds." Frustrated by this unreasonable demand from his fiancée-to-be, Mr. B decided to end his relationship with Ms. A by rejecting her request.

About three weeks later, Ms. A called Mr. B to a coffee shop. There, she pressured him, saying, "You took my virginity and then disappeared, so if you don't want me to file a lawsuit, pay me damages." She forced him to choose between paying a settlement of 30 million won and resuming their relationship, or paying 50 million won and breaking up. She further threatened him, saying, "A record of (sexual crime) accusation will follow you until you retire," exploiting Mr. B's status as a public official. Intimidated by her threats, Mr. B wrote a 'marriage implementation agreement' stating he would pay marriage funds and transferred approximately 30 million won to Ms. A.

Afterwards, Mr. B suffered from severe stress. Upon consulting a lawyer, he was advised that his fiancée's actions constituted a crime, so he demanded the return of the marriage funds from Ms. A. In response, Ms. A continued her threats, saying, "Even if I get charged with extortion or defamation, I won't get fired, but you (as a civil servant) will lose your job over a sexual offense. The record will remain for life, and you'll be dismissed." Eventually, Mr. B filed a complaint against Ms. A, after which she submitted a false complaint claiming, "My boyfriend raped me." Ms. A even contacted Mr. B's superior, claiming to be a victim of a sexual crime, and demanded disciplinary action against him. As a result, Mr. B was branded a 'sex offender' within the civil service and faced the risk of being suspended from his position.

When Ms. A was brought to trial, she argued, "I was actually raped," and claimed, "(The money demand) was a settlement paid by Mr. B because he unilaterally broke off the engagement." However, the court determined that Ms. A's claims were false, based on recorded phone calls and text messages exchanged between the two.

The first-instance court stated, "Considering all the evidence, it is reasonable to conclude that the defendant had consensual sexual relations with the victim but filed a false accusation contrary to the objective truth." The court also pointed out, "Although the defendant claimed the victim raped her multiple times, she continued a romantic relationship with him, intending to marry." The court added, "The defendant exploited the victim’s status as a civil servant to extort money by threatening to file a sexual assault complaint, yet continues to deny the crime and shows no remorse." However, the court also explained the sentencing, saying, "Nevertheless, since the case filed by the defendant resulted in a 'non-indictment decision,' so no legal proceedings were initiated against the victim, this was considered in determining the sentence." The court did not order Ms. A to be remanded, in order to give her an opportunity to reach a settlement or make restitution to the victim.

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