Female soldier sexually assaulted again at new unit after fleeing previous abuse, changing name

A female noncommissioned officer in her 20s who had previously suffered sexual abuse in the military — and even changed her name before transferring to a new unit — was sexually assaulted again by a superior, it has emerged.

According to JTBC's "Sageon Banjang," a crime-affairs program that aired Thursday, A was commissioned as an Army NCO in December 2021 and was sexually harassed and assaulted by a male superior just six months after her first unit assignment.

Traumatized by the incident, she self-harmed and was hospitalized. Unwilling to abandon her military career, she took a year of leave before transferring to a different unit in November 2024.

At the new unit, A gradually adjusted with the help of a male senior administrative supply officer identified as B. But ten months after her transfer, in September last year, the nightmare repeated itself.

B reportedly visited A's home under the pretext of explaining administrative duties. A said she had taken prescribed sleeping pills and fallen asleep, and when she woke, B was on top of her, naked, and her own clothes had been removed.

"At first I doubted my own memory because of the sleeping pills," A said. "But the home security camera had captured the perpetrator in the nude." She immediately fled to the bathroom and sent a message to a group chat of military officers, writing that she had been sexually assaulted at home and asking them to come quickly. B was arrested at the scene by military officers and police.

B reportedly told police during questioning that he had only touched her body and attempted sexual intercourse. Military police nonetheless referred the case to military prosecutors on charges of quasi-rape against a soldier, citing DNA test results from a sexual assault support center and home camera footage as key evidence.

The investigation has made little progress despite nearly a year passing since the incident.

A has been on leave and receiving inpatient psychiatric treatment since the assault. She is reported to be struggling with daily life due to panic disorder, stress-induced alopecia areata and severe trauma, while also facing a heavy financial burden from medical and living expenses.

Allegations of secondary victimization within the military have also surfaced. A said that after reporting the incident to police and informing her unit, a superior told her words to the effect of "don't play media games."

"After being sexually assaulted at my first unit, I transferred and even changed my name — and this still happened to me," A said. "Now I am afraid to meet people at all." She added that she could not bring herself to leave the military, fearing the case would fizzle out if she did, and said she hoped the perpetrator would be punished as soon as possible and the case brought to a proper conclusion.

Attorney Park Ji-hoon, who reviewed the case, said the charges were likely to be upheld given that key evidence including DNA and video footage had been secured. He added, however, that it was "regrettable" that the investigation had seen little meaningful progress in the ten months since the incident.