Police arrest man in 30s who offered to pay teenagers to graffiti Gyeongbok Palace

An image of the vandalized walls of Gyeongbok Palace's Yeongchumun on Dec. 17, 2023. [KOREA HERITAGE SERVICE]

A man in his 30s who offered two teenagers 3 million won ($2,200) to spray-paint Gyeongbok Palace in central Seoul in December is now in police custody, five months after the vandalism took place.

The cyber investigation team at the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency said Thursday that it had taken the man, identified as A, into custody on Wednesday, adding that it will file for an arrest warrant the same day.

When the two vandals — a 17-year-old boy and his 16-year-old girlfriend — were caught in December for spray-painting the palace walls on Dec. 16, they said they were offered money to paint the addresses of illegal streaming websites from a person using the ID “Team leader Lee” online.

Police only filed for the arrest warrant against the teenage boy, as his girlfriend not take part in the vandalism despite being with the suspect at the time. However, the arrest warrant was dismissed by court, citing that he was a juvenile offender.

In December, several parts Gyeongbok Palace's walls were vandalized on two separate occasions. The 17-year-old boy admitted to the first incident, which took place on Dec. 16, while a man in his 20s admitted to the incident that took place the following day.

The Korea Heritage Service (KHS) said Thursday the damage from the two incidents totaled 150 million won, after receiving a total sum from an appraisal agency. It will charge the amount to the two vandals.

According to the KHS, the restoration work for the first incident will cost around 121 million won, while the damage from the second incident will cost around 19 million won.

The KHS said it will file civil suits against the two in June to demand compensation.

Preservation work has been undertaken to restore the walls, with the latest being performed last month from April 18 to 24.

The suspect charged with the second incident is currently on trial. As he is in his 20s, prosecutors are requesting that the court sentence him to three years in prison, saying his crime of damaging a national heritage site should be seen as serious.

BY YIM SEUNG-HYE, KIM JI-YE [yim.seunghye@joongang.co.kr]