Middle schoolers who gang-raped girl and shared footage get prison terms upheld — ringleader was female

The Supreme Court has upheld prison sentences of up to eight years for a group who gang-raped a fellow middle school student, illegally filmed the assault and distributed the footage roughly eight years ago.

The Supreme Court's Third Division on Saturday confirmed the lower court's ruling against a woman in her 20s, identified only as A, who was convicted of violating the Act on the Protection of Children and Youth against Sexual Abuse, among other charges. The court upheld a sentence of eight years in prison, 80 hours of a sexual violence treatment program and a 10-year ban on employment at institutions serving children, youth and people with disabilities.

Three accomplices also had their sentences confirmed: prison terms of four to five years for some, and two years and six months suspended with a four-year probationary period for another, along with 40 hours of a sexual violence treatment program and a seven-year employment ban at related institutions.

The defendants were 14 to 15 years old in August 2018 when they stripped a 14-year-old female classmate, identified as B, in a public restroom and a private residence in Sejong, livestreamed her body online and sexually assaulted her.

According to prosecutors, A assaulted B during the incident, filmed the sexual assault and then threatened her, saying she would distribute the footage if B reported the crime. Prosecutors said the illegally filmed material was distributed.

Fearing retaliation, the victim did not go to police until February 2024 — about six years after the assault.

The first-instance court sentenced A to eight years in prison and the three accomplices to four to five years, or two years and six months suspended with four years of probation. The court said "even crimes committed as minors cannot escape appropriate accountability" and that "the offenses were extremely sadistic and grotesque."

The appellate court dismissed all appeals, ruling that "even taking into account the deposits made on behalf of the victim and the belated acknowledgment and confession of the crimes, it is difficult to conclude that the lower court exceeded the reasonable bounds of its discretion."

The Supreme Court likewise dismissed the final appeals and upheld the lower court's ruling.