The interior of a monthly-rent studio in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province, after a tenant fled without paying rent or utilities, as shared by the poster. [Instagram]
The interior of a monthly-rent studio in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province, after a tenant fled without paying rent or utilities, as shared by the poster. [Instagram]

A tenant in a studio apartment in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province, reportedly filled the unit with garbage and disappeared without paying months of rent and utility bills.

On Thursday, a video was posted on Instagram with the caption, "I hope the woman in her 30s who ran away gets her divine punishment."

The 16-second clip showed the studio's interior completely buried under trash with no room to step. Plastic bags, food delivery containers and half-eaten leftovers were piled knee-high across the floor, while dozens of used disposable coffee cups were crammed onto a shelf.

A heap of plastic cups from a budget coffee brand, each fitted with a yellow straw, was stacked in front of the bathroom door, and streaks of spilled drink ran down the tiled walls. The bed mattress was also covered in stains.

The person who posted the video, identified only as A, said the tenant had lived in the no-deposit short-term unit for more than a year through successive three-month renewals. "The deposit was under 1 million won ($709), yet she fled leaving more than 500,000 won in unpaid monthly rent and utility bills over several months," A wrote. "That is nowhere near enough to cover cleaning costs after deducting from the deposit."

A added that the building owner had all of the tenant's personal information but appeared to have concluded that pursuing a civil damages claim would be too difficult given the owner's age. "From what I heard, everyone who knew her said she seemed perfectly normal. I cannot judge beyond that," A wrote.

A also explained that the footage was filmed after some of the trash had already been cleared. "At first, garbage was packed all the way to the entrance with no room to step — I visited and filmed after some of it had been removed," A said.


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