A mobile wedding invitation [Yonhap]
A mobile wedding invitation [Yonhap]

An elementary school principal who circulated a fake wedding invitation for his child to collect congratulatory cash gifts ahead of his retirement has been referred to prosecutors.

The Gwangyang Police Station in South Jeolla Province said Tuesday it had forwarded the case of the principal, identified only as A, of an elementary school in Gwangyang to prosecutors on fraud charges without seeking his detention.

In April, A posted a mobile wedding invitation in a staff group chat, announcing that his son was getting married and including bank account numbers for both the bride's and groom's sides.

He also asked for understanding, saying the ceremony would be a small, family-only affair and that he would be unable to invite guests in person. When some staff members looked into the matter, however, they found no wedding reservation at the date and venue listed on the invitation.

It also emerged that A's son had already married last year. Critics accused A of fabricating a wedding to pocket congratulatory money before his retirement.

A subsequently posted a notice saying the wedding had been canceled and apologized, but investigators found he had already received several million won in gift money transferred to his account by staff members.

Police concluded there were grounds for fraud charges, citing the absence of any actual wedding plans, and forwarded the case to prosecutors. Education authorities conducted an audit and imposed a heavy disciplinary penalty on A.


bbo@heraldcorp.com