A convenience store worker in his 20s who took expired food and other items without permission has been indicted on theft charges and received a suspended fine.
Judge Kim Ju-hyeon of the Chungju Branch of Cheongju District Court suspended a fine of 200,000 won ($141) against the defendant, identified only as A, 23, on Monday.
A suspended sentence in South Korea defers punishment for a set period; if two years pass from the date of suspension without further offense, the sentence is effectively nullified.
A was indicted after allegedly taking triangular kimbap, plastic bags, a soft drink and other items worth about 28,000 won from a convenience store in Chungju, North Chungcheong Province, on three separate occasions last September while working there as a part-time employee.
In court, A admitted to taking the plastic bags but said he had mistakenly believed the store owner had given standing permission for staff to take expired food slated for disposal — and therefore had no intent to steal the remaining items.
The court rejected that argument. The store had standing instructions requiring employees to first register expired items in the disposal system and place them in a designated basket before they could be removed. Items registered for disposal could only be consumed on the premises or taken off-site with the owner's explicit approval.
"The defendant did not register the items in question for disposal, and some — including the soft drink — do not appear to be expired food," Judge Kim said in the ruling. "It is established that the defendant took the items while recognizing, at least conditionally, that the victim had not given permission."
However, Judge Kim said he took into account that A had acknowledged the offense, that the value of the stolen goods was small, and that some of the items did in fact appear to be expired food when determining the sentence.
betterj@heraldcorp.com
