Outrage in Yongin: Citizens Rise Up Against ‘Absurd’ Leaflet Incident, Demanding Justice Beyond Dongtan Police
Public Outcry Over Middle School Student’s Prosecution for Removing Apartment Leaflet
The website of the Yongin Eastern Police Station in Gyeonggi Province has been inundated with complaints following the prosecution of a middle school student for property damage after removing a leaflet from an apartment in Yongin.
Dozens of posts have been made on the police station’s free bulletin board, with many writers expressing outrage and sarcasm over the incident. Some have posted mocking messages, such as, “I also put up illegal leaflets in front of my house, but I plan to withdraw for fear of prosecution,” or “If I have illegal leaflets posted in my apartment, should I just call 112 and ask them to take them down?”
Others have criticized the police actions as unjust, saying, “We’ll plaster the message on the bulletin board, so if you remove it, we’ll sue you for property damage” or ”We’ll sue all the police officers who are illegal in the police station. Picked up and put down leaflets.”
Many have also expressed frustration with the police, stating, “Criminals are worse than incompetent police officers,” “Please don’t look at the law like you’re solving a problem book, but apply it with common sense,” and ”They’re law enforcement officers. No, so they should be held accountable for their actions.”
The controversy began when a middle school girl dropped a flyer from the elevator mirror at her apartment complex last May. Three months later, she received a notice of investigation results stating that she was being sent for prosecution for ‘property damage’.
According to the student’s mother, the flyer in question was not a notice posted by the apartment management office or a residents’ representative meeting, but an illegal advertisement posted by a self-support organization in the apartment.
It has also been reported that two residents of the apartment where the student lived were sent to prosecution for damage to property in a similar case in July last year.
Following the public outcry, the Gyeonggi Southern Police Agency, the superior agency of the Yongin East Division, has decided to conduct a supplemental investigation after discussions with the prosecution.