[Getty Images Bank]
[Getty Images Bank]

A woman in her 40s has been fined after assaulting a man in his 20s who secretly filmed her inside a women's restroom.

Judge Seok Dong-woo of Changwon District Court's Criminal Division 4 sentenced the woman, identified only as A, to a fine of 300,000 won ($220) on assault charges on Sunday.

A was indicted on charges of punching a man in his 20s, identified as B, in the face 15 to 17 times inside a women's restroom on the first floor of a building in Seongsan-gu, Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province, at around 5:40 a.m. on Dec. 8, 2024. B had been secretly filming her while she used the restroom.

A denied assaulting B.

The court found the assault had occurred, noting that B had consistently described being attacked even while acknowledging his own illegal filming.

The court also found B's account credible given the circumstances. B had previously committed illegal filming offenses and was serving a suspended sentence — one year and two months in prison, suspended for three years — when he filmed A again. The court said it was unlikely B would falsely claim he had been assaulted, since doing so risked derailing a settlement with A that he needed given his legal situation.

The court said the assault could not be considered self-defense or otherwise legally justified conduct. "Beyond blocking the exit with her leg to prevent B — who was apologizing for the filming — from fleeing, she punched him in the face 15 to 17 times," the court said, adding that the totality of the circumstances did not support a finding of self-defense or socially acceptable conduct.


paq@heraldcorp.com