BTS’s Ganghwamun Concert Threat Poster Writer Sued by Police for Compensation

The police have announced they will pursue compensation claims against A, a 50-year-old man who wrote threatening posts targeting BTS’s concert at Ganghwamun last March.

The National Police Agency stated on the 15th that it plans to file a lawsuit demanding 2.28 million won in damages against A, who left 22 threatening comments on social media posts related to BTS’s Ganghwamun concert, including one stating he would throw a water bottle filled with gasoline. A posted such threatening remarks on a post titled “Traffic Control Information for BTS’s Ganghwamun Concert” on March 19th. The police immediately arrested him and transferred him to the prosecutors’ office for the crime of public intimidation. Subsequently, the court sentenced A to 10 months in prison suspended for 2 years.

To enhance the corrective and preventive effects against crimes of public intimidation, the police are actively holding individuals accountable through civil lawsuits for financial compensation. From December last year to February this year, they have also decided to demand a total of 31.91 million won in damages from those who threatened major companies like Kakao and KT with “bomb installations” or threatened to blow up stations such as Gangnam Station, Busan Station, and Cheonan Station. Additionally, they plan to seek 1.21 million won in compensation from someone who posted a false threat to blow up the Presidential Office and Blue House last December.

The police established a dedicated team to address crimes of public intimidation starting in November last year. Since December of the same year, police agencies in various provinces have been operating compensation review committees. The National Police Agency stated, “We intend to continue actively managing these compensation review committees to prevent security gaps caused by wasted law enforcement resources and to avoid public anxiety.”