Doctor sentenced to 16 years for drugging and sexually assaulting patients
The Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld a 16-year prison sentence for a doctor who illegally prescribed drugs and sexually assaulted multiple women while they were under anesthesia.
The court confirmed a lower court's ruling that sentenced the doctor, surnamed Yeom, to 16 years in prison and a 5 million won ($3,500) fine for violating the Narcotics Control Act and committing rape by intoxication.
Yeom's illegal prescription of narcotics came to light during an investigation into an August 2023 car accident involving a Rolls-Royce driver, Shin. Yeom was found to have prescribed and administered powerful sedatives — including propofol, midazolam and ketamine — beyond medical necessity to Shin, who later killed a pedestrian while driving under the influence of the drugs.
His medical license suspended during the investigation, but he continued to practice medicine until early October 2023, administering propofol and performing other procedures.
Yeom was later also charged with sexually assaulting about 10 unconscious female patients and illegally taking hundreds of photos of their bodies between January 2022 and October 2023.
'The offense caused serious social harm and warrants a strict punishment. A heavy sentence is unavoidable,' the lower court said in its ruling. The Supreme Court found no grounds to overturn the verdict.
Yeom was initially sentenced to 17 years in prison and a 5 million won fine in June 2024. At the time, the court cited his 'severe moral hazard' as a medical professional. The sentence was later reduced to 16 years in January after he admitted to the crimes and paid 76 million won in compensation.
Meanwhile, Shin, the man who killed a pedestrian while driving under the influence of the drugs prescribed by Yeom, was sentenced to 20 years in prison. That sentence was later reduced to 10 years on appeal.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Korea Herald
2 days ago
- Korea Herald
Court again postpones Lee's election law violation retrial
The Seoul High Court said Monday it has again postponed President Lee Jae-myung's retrial on election law violation charges. The court said the first hearing scheduled for June 18 was postponed to an undetermined future date in accordance with Article 84 of the Constitution, which exempts a sitting president from criminal prosecution except in the case of insurrection or treason. Lee was elected president on June 3 after former President Yoon Suk Yeol was removed from office over his botched imposition of martial law in December. The Seoul High Court previously postponed the first hearing from May 15 citing the need to guarantee a "fair electioneering opportunity" to then presidential candidate Lee. The retrial comes after the Supreme Court remanded the case in May, overturning the Seoul High Court's decision to acquit Lee of a suspended prison term in connection with alleged false statements he made ahead of the previous presidential election in 2022. (Yonhap)
Korea Herald
5 days ago
- Korea Herald
Controversy-ridden former presidential worker was Kim Keon Hee's photographer: report
YouTuber who filmed videos from inside the presidential office had taken staged photos for former first lady The woman who posted controversial YouTube videos about her daily life as a worker in the presidential office turned out to be an official who took photos for former first lady Kim Keon Hee, a local media outlet reported. According to the CBS Nocut News, the person was a former Class 9 civil servant surnamed Shin, who had joined ex-President's Yoon Suk Yeol's staff during his presidential campaign in 2022. Shin had purportedly just graduated from college and was entrusted with administrative duties at the presidential office, in particular taking photos of Yoon's wife. It was reported that Shin was responsible for the several staged photos of Kim that were subject of controversy. This included a photo of Yoon's wife holding a sick Cambodian boy in her arms, a photo of her appearing to give instructions to police officials that sparked criticism of her overstepping her role, and photos at the opening of the Suncheonman International Garden Expo 2023 that was focused on Kim and not the event itself. The CBS report said several former officials of the presidential office had made internal complaints over the photos, which were supposedly overruled by Kim. The report also said that Shin had received several warnings for tardiness and had frequently argued with her superiors, but was able to squash out the complaints against herself on the former first lady's authority. The videos recently posted by the former presidential office employee also sparked disputes here, for her filming the outer areas of the secure facility and showing it to the public. During the impeachment trials of now-expelled Yoon, the presidential office in January filed for criminal charges against local broadcasters for filming the official presidential residence from the outside. It claimed that such act was in violation of the Protection of Military Bases and Installations Act, specifically the Article 9 that bans filming in the area designated as a "Protection Zone." The same logic would prevent filming the outside areas of the presidential office. Neither the presidential office or the former employee has issued a comment on the controversy, although she made the disputed videos inaccessible to the public.
Korea Herald
28-05-2025
- Korea Herald
Supreme Court says police can't take back lenient sanction
The Supreme Court recently confirmed a lower court ruling that said a defendant accused of violating the Road Traffic Act cannot be punished, because he had already been given a more lenient punishment by mistake. The defendant had been stopped riding an electric unicycle — a self-balancing single wheel personal transporter — under suspicion of riding it while drunk on June 28, 2023. He refused to take a sobriety test, and was ordered by police to pay an administrative fine of 100,000 won ($72), which he paid shortly the following month. The officer in question thought the unicycle was a "personal mobility" device, defined by the Road Traffic Act as a motorized personal vehicle with maximum speed of 25 kilometers per hour and weighing under 30 kilograms. Drunk-driving of a personal mobility vehicle, or refusing to take a sobriety test while driving one, is subject to an administrative fine but not to criminal punishment. But it was later found that the electric unicycle is actually categorized as a motorcycle. As such, the rider should have been subject to indictment and possible criminal punishment. Despite the indictment by the prosecution, the district court had said police do not have the authority to revoke a punishment that has already been administered. "Even if the law was wrongfully applied due to the mistake of those in charge, the defendant's rights must be protected. The appellate court upheld the ruling, as did the country's highest court, finding no errors in the previous rulings' interpretation of the law.
