On April 16, the Suwon High Court’s Criminal Division 2-3 (Presiding Judges Park Kwang Seo, Kim Min Gi, and Kim Jong Woo) held the final appeal hearing for Yoo Young Jae (62), a broadcaster and former news anchor, who is accused of forcible molestation of a relative under the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Sexual Crimes. The prosecution requested a five-year prison sentence, the same as in the first trial.
Yoo is the ex-husband of actress Sunwoo Eun Sook (66), and the victim is reported to be her older sister.
In the first trial, held on January 23, Yoo was sentenced to two years and six months in prison, ordered to complete 40 hours of a sexual violence treatment program, and banned from working in institutions related to children, adolescents, and people with disabilities for five years. Although he had remained free throughout the trial, he was taken into custody immediately after the first verdict was delivered.
In his final statement, Yoo said, “I deeply bow my head and apologize to the victim who has suffered. I have reflected deeply while in prison. I regret my poor judgment that led to this situation.”
Yoo was found to have committed multiple acts of unwanted physical contact on five occasions in 2023 toward Sunwoo Eun Sook’s elder sister, amounting to forcible molestation.
Sunwoo Eun Sook and Yoo Young Jae reportedly met in 2022, bonding over their shared Christian faith. Their whirlwind romance led them to promise marriage just eight days after meeting, and they legally registered their marriage two months later. The couple made headlines at the time due to the swift development of their relationship, but they eventually divorced in April 2023.
A separate lawsuit for annulment of marriage, filed by Sunwoo Eun Sook, is currently underway and is unrelated to the criminal proceedings.
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