Three South Korean men under trial for stealing an expensive watch have pleaded for leniency, with one of the defendants claiming to have too low an IQ to have had a clear idea of what he was getting himself into. Jeju District Court on Wednesday held a hearing on a 19-year-old man who stole a Rolex watch worth about 19 million won ($13,800) in Jeju city, along with his two accomplices, both aged 20. The suspects were caught while trying to sell the watch at a pawn shop in another part of the ci

A court recently handed down a two-year prison sentence for a South Korean man for photocopying hundreds of counterfeit banknotes and gift certificates and scattering them through the window of his apartment building. The 43-year-old suspect surnamed Jo has been found guilty on charges including counterfeiting currency, counterfeiting valuable securities and defamation by the Seoul Northern District Court. "The nature of the crime is severe, in that (the defendant) infringed upon the credib

Majority of the disabled population aged 65 and up

The Ministry of Justice is set to conduct a parole review next week, with President Yoon Suk Yeol's mother-in-law expected to be included among those up for consideration, local media outlets reported Thursday. The ministry is slated to hold a monthly session of the Probation and Parole Board next Tuesday, according to reports citing legal sources. Among the inmates undergoing the review will be Choi Eun-soon, the 77-year-old mother of first lady Kim Keon Hee. Choi has been incarcerated at

A South Korean man has been extradited home from Kuwait this week, 12 years after he fled to the Middle Eastern nation to avoid arrest on charges of fraud amounting to some 3 billion won ($2.17 million), officials said Thursday. The suspect, 58, was brought home through Incheon International Airport on Wednesday afternoon to face charges that he defrauded the victim after fabricating a company document ordering construction materials in May 2011, according to police. After he fled to Kuwait in S

South Korea will build its own maintenance facility for its F-35A stealth jets by 2027, a move that would enhance operational efficiency and reduce costs, the state arms procurement agency said Thursday. South Korea's Air Force operates a fleet of 39 F-35As at an air base in Cheongju, 112 kilometers south of Seoul, after one jet retired last year due to damage from a bird strike. In December, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration signed a letter of acceptance with the US government

First Vice Foreign Minister Kim Hong-kyun has visited Mauritius as a special envoy for an upcoming summit with African nations, his office said Thursday. Kim paid a courtesy call on Mauritian Prime Minister Pravind Kumar Jugnauth on Wednesday and discussed cooperation in the areas of infrastructure and high-level exchanges, according to the ministry. He asked for Mauritius's support and attendance at the South Korea-Africa summit, to be held on June 4-5 in Seoul, saying the meeting will ser

South Korea's envoy for climate met with top government officials in Algeria earlier this week and discussed an upcoming summit with African nations and other environmental issues, the foreign ministry said Thursday. Kim Hyo-eun, ambassador and deputy foreign minister on climate change, met with Lounes Magramane, the secretary general of Algeria's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and National Community Abroad, on Wednesday. Kim invited Algeria to the South Korea-Africa summit, set for June

Senior trade officials from South Korea and the United States discussed preparations for the upcoming three-way talks of industry chiefs with Japan, Seoul's industry ministry said Thursday. The discussion was made as Deputy Minister for Trade Yang Byeong-nae met with officials from the US Department of Commerce and the Office of the US Trade Representative during his three-day visit to Washington this week, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. Seoul and Washington also d

South Korea's National Assembly Speaker Kim Jin-pyo stressed the need Wednesday to beef up joint deterrence efforts by Seoul and Washington to address evolving North Korean military capabilities, which he said pose a "direct" threat to the continental United States. Kim made the remarks during a forum hosted by the Institute for Korean Studies at George Washington University, urging Pyongyang to cease its nuclear threats and return to the "path of denuclearization." &quo

Long-distance travel will be more active this year than before, and many will leave for North America or Europe. A local online tourist agency, yeogi.com, surveyed its 233 mobile app users in March, and 62.2 percent of respondents said they are planning long-distance travel to destinations including the US, Canada, France and the UK. These results show a change from recent preferences for short trips to countries nearby such as Japan and Vietnam. North America was named the most preferred dest

The manager of a K-pop boy band was dismissed on suspicion of installing a hidden camera in a theater dressing room, the band’s label WM Entertainment announced Wednesday. The camera was reportedly spotted by an actor who was starring in the musical “Next to Normal,” in a dressing room located on the sixth floor of the Kwanglim Art Center in southern Seoul on April 9. The actor immediately reported the camera to the police. According to local media reports, the dismissed employ

S .Korean first vice foreign minister met Kenyan president as special presidential envoy for summit

Opposition head rejects president’s criticisms of being “populist”

Thomas-Greenfield expresses concerns over potential military cooperation between NK, Iran