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Man sentenced for blackmail after falsely accusing woman of giving him sexually transmitted infection

Published: 19 Apr. 2025, 15:20

KIM JEE-HEE
[email protected]

A man in his 20s was sentenced to 10 months in prison for blackmailing a woman out of tens of millions of won. [JOONGANG ILBO]

A man in his 20s was sentenced to 10 months in prison for blackmailing a woman out of tens of millions of won after falsely claiming she had given him a sexually transmitted infection after they had sex.

The Masan branch of Changwon District Court in South Gyeongsang handed down the sentence Saturday, finding the man guilty of blackmailing and related charges.

The court also ordered the defendant to complete a 40-hour stalking treatment program.

The man was sent to court for blackmailing the woman in October 2023, saying, “Send me money to cover my treatment expenses or I will let your boyfriend find out that I have been infected with a sexually transmitted disease because of you.”

The man was found to have threatened the woman 56 times to extort a total of 28 million won ($19,740).

It was later revealed that the man had never been infected by the woman and was lying with the intent to blackmail the woman.

Even after the woman expressed the intention to cut contact, the man stalked her by repeatedly contacting her through text messages and phone calls.

The man was also charged for extorting 22.3 million won in property from a different victim after threatening them 64 times from September 2022 through June 2024.

The judge noted that the extent of the total damage was significant, especially given the victims' age and career circumstances.

“The total financial harm amounts to 50 million won, and the impact appears to be serious when considering the victims’ age and professional background,” the court said. “Despite this, no restitution has been made, and the threats used in the extortion were particularly severe.”

BY JUNG SI-NAE, KIM JEE-HEE [[email protected]]