The ‘Miryang Sexual Assault Case’ From 20 Years Ago Is Currently ALL THE Rage In South Korea As A Result Of A ‘Cyber Wrecker’ YouTuber Disclosing The Identities Of The 44 Attackers

The ‘Miryang Sexual Assault Case’ of 2004, which occurred 20 years ago, is today the talk of South Korea. During the course of a year, 44 male high school students sexually abused and molested a 14-year-old female middle school student in the city of Miryang, Gyeongsangnam-do. The victim was repeatedly gang-raped by these male students from other high schools in the Miryang region who established a “coalition” and “passed around” the victim. Additionally, the attackers recorded the woman and threatened to release the video if she attempted to contact the authorities. But in the end, the police inquiry and trial resulted in no criminal charges against any of the 44 attackers since they were “minors with no prior crimes committed.” All of the attackers left the case with no criminal records because the majority of them were just given community service sentences or placed in juvenile correctional facilities. The verdict from the court at the time also stated that “these young men have careers or education plans” and that “the degree of rape was not severe” and that “some of the young men may have acted impulsively out of sexual curiosity or peer pressure”. One “cyber wrecker” YouTube channel then started disclosing the identity of the 44 attackers from the “Miryang Sexual Assault Case” on June 1 KST. The identify of ‘A’ was made public along with his SNS account on the first day. The cyber wrecker claimed that ‘A’ was employed by a relative who operated a well-known restaurant. Then, a picture of him posing on Instagram with food entrepreneur Baek Jong Won soon went viral, infuriating a lot of internet users. Day two saw the revelation of ‘B’s’ identity. The news that ‘B’ was employed by ‘Volvo Korea’ infuriated many people once more. ‘A’ and ‘B’ were both married, had kids, and led regular lives. Finally, on the third day, ‘C’—a close friend of ‘B’—was identified. ‘C’ was a married mother of a daughter who also worked for a “big name company”. The three people’s places of employment have all posted statements online since their identities were made public, attesting to the fact that ‘A, B, and C’ were let go from their positions. Since the incident, the restaurant where ‘A’ was employed has not reopened. According to the “cyber wrecker,” they plan to reveal the identity of each of the 44 attackers from the “Miryang Case” one at a time. The YouTuber “did not ask for permission from the victim’s family” before making this information public, according to members of the Korea Sexual Violence Relief Center (KSVRC), who have come forward since the issue has garnered significant attention. (A PICTURE COLLAGED OF PEOPLE SUSPECTED TO BE INVOLVED IN THE ‘MIRYANG CASE’ IS SPREADING FAST ONLINE.) Regarding the case’s latest developments and ethical implications, Korean internet users are currently split. Some people want the 44 attackers from the “Miryang Case” to have their identities made available to the public online. They think the attackers “deserve” to be “served justice” and shouldn’t be allowed to continue enjoying their life in society as though they had done nothing wrong. Some, meanwhile, expressed worries that this problem would harm the victim and her family once more. Some believed that the victim “has the right to be forgotten” and requested that before causing further controversy, the cyber wrecker obtain the victim’s family’s permission in a legitimate manner.