South Korean principal sentenced to four years for student sexual abuse

The Supreme Court of Korea has finalized a four-year prison sentence for a 63-year-old elementary school principal accused of sexually abusing and harassing 10 students under the age of 13.

Between April and December 2023, the principal committed the offenses primarily within his office, with two instances occurring on the school playground. The crimes were brought to light after fellow students took action to help a victim by filming the incidents and organizing a group chat to collect evidence and discuss countermeasures. Other students also came forward to their parents after hearing about the abuse.

While the first instance of the trial resulted in an eight-year sentence, the appellate court reduced the term to four years. The reduction occurred after the court determined that approximately 180 of the alleged incidents were calculated mechanically based on victim testimony regarding frequency rather than being individually specified. The defendant's appeal to the Supreme Court was rejected, upholding the four-year sentence.