Man in His 40s Disappears Again After 20 Years of Re-Enlistment, Sentenced to Prison

A man in his 40s, who had absconded during alternative service in 2004, was sentenced to prison after he deserted once again while serving as a social service personnel nearly 20 years later, and also committed theft.

On the 19th, the Chuncheon District Court Wonju Support sentenced Mr. A, who was arrested and indicted for violating the Military Service Act and theft, to 6 months in prison.

The court pointed out that Mr. A's unauthorized absence from service was a significant factor in determining the sentence, especially as he was just two months away from being eligible for military service exemption.

Mr. A was indicted for being absent from his duty at the Daejeon-Chungnam Regional Military Manpower Administration for about eight days without valid reason during October to November of last year.

According to the prosecution's indictment and the court's information, Mr. A absconded while serving as an administrative assistant at a university under alternative service in September 2004, and his service had been suspended for about 20 years due to being untraceable since October of that year.

Despite claiming financial difficulties, he could not receive valid reasons for his absence.

In early October of last year, Mr. A’s whereabouts were identified, and he began re-serving but again deserted.

Even though the military service official persuaded him to sincerely perform his duties because he could receive military service exemption after just about two months of work, he disappeared again.

In addition to his unauthorized absence, Mr. A was also tried for stealing a laptop, charger, and power bank near the entrance of the Soraepogu Station on the Suin-Bundang Line in Namdong-gu, Incheon, on January 9, 2021, when his service had been suspended.

Chief Judge Kim stated, "The defendant has previously received fines on two occasions for violating the Military Service Act. He claims he could not serve properly due to financial difficulties, but this cannot be a valid reason for unauthorized absence."

He added, "Given the high potential for social condemnation of the defendant's actions, a corresponding punishment is necessary."

However, the court explained that it took into account several mitigating circumstances, such as the defendant's unfavorable family environment, his homelessness, and that he scavenged for paper to make a living, the fact that the stolen property was returned, and that the defendant had no prior criminal record exceeding a fine in determining the sentence.

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