[Exclusive] Hwang Ui-jo's victim speaks out

[Anchor]

Football player Hwang Ui-jo, who was indicted on charges of illegal filming, received a suspended prison sentence in the first trial.

In an exclusive email interview with KBS, the victim stated that she is still living in pain and that the "secondary victimization" was the hardest to endure.

This is a report by Lee Ho-jun.

[Report]

The victim of Hwang Ui-jo's illegal filming revealed through an email interview with KBS that she is still living in pain.

She claimed that the first trial's verdict mentioned that Hwang’s sister-in-law was responsible for distributing the illegal footage, suggesting Hwang was the victim in this case.

[Victim A / Email voiceover: "If the illegal filming had not occurred, the distribution would not have happened. It’s very bewildering that the perpetrator has suddenly become the victim."]

She also mentioned that secondary victimization occurred, as Hwang’s side exposed some of her personal information.

[Victim A / Email voiceover: "There were threats, through media, to release all my past KakaoTalk messages. They framed the victim as a gold digger..."]

The victim also stated that the court did not show considerations to her as the victim.

[Victim A / Email voiceover: "The judge suggested that I speak directly in court. For a sexual crime victim, exposure of one's identity is the scariest thing. Did they think I could expose myself to reporters and staff..."]

[Lee Eun-ui/Lawyer for the victim: "The presiding judge said to speak within a minute. The reason for restraining my statement was that it should not harm Hwang Ui-jo's reputation based on unverified facts."]

According to the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, 88% of victims of illegal filming have experienced secondary damage.

However, only secondary damage that occurs during the settlement attempt process is defined as an aggravating factor in sentencing.

[Jang Da-hye/Senior Researcher at the Korean Institute of Criminology and Justice: "(Secondary damage) can occur in various ways, so it is necessary to broadly include the part of 'secondary damage' caused by the defendant or the defendant's acquaintances as a sentencing factor."]

The victim stated that she would fight in the appeals court to ensure that Hwang receives a strong punishment.

Hwang's side claimed that they were acquitted of the secondary victimization charges and have not mentioned the victim since then.

This is Lee Ho-jun from KBS News.