The Korea Herald

Chinese man put under arrest for forging evidence in alleged espionage case

Mar 16, 2014

A Chinese man was formally detained Saturday pending trial on charges of forging Chinese immigration records to help Seoul's main spy agency frame a North Korean defector for espionage, court officials said. The 61-year-old ethnic Korean with Chinese nationality, only identified by his surname Kim, is suspected of forging immigration records purporting to be the defector's and handing them over to the National Intelligence Service (NIS) last year.The Seoul Central District Court on Saturday appr
Koreans appeal to White House for return of ‘royal seals’

Mar 15, 2014

A South Korean group campaigning for the return of Korea's national treasures and artifacts abroad has reached out to the White House in a bid to get its voice heard.The International Organization on Retrieval of Korean National Treasures Inc. filed an online petition with the "We the People" page of the White House website.It asked the U.S. to formally return the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1901) Royal Seal and several other Korean treasures apparently stolen by American soldiers during the 1950-53 Ko
Wolseong 3 reactor halts operations, cause unknown

Mar 15, 2014

A nuclear reactor at South Korea's Wolseong nuclear power plant automatically stopped operating early Saturday, plant operators said, adding that they are still investigating the cause.The 700,000-kilowatt reactor stopped operating at 6:50 a.m. when its safety shutdown system became engaged, according to Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power Co. It added that power supply will remain stable throughout the weekend.The reactor, located in the country's southeastern provincial city of Gyeongju, began comme
S. Korean aircraft join search for missing Malaysia Airlines jet

Mar 15, 2014

Two South Korean military aircraft left for Malaysia Saturday to assist with ongoing international search efforts for a missing Malaysia Airlines passenger jet, military sources said.The P-3C Orion patrol aircraft and C-130 military transport airplane will arrive in Kuala Lumpur at 7:00 p.m., Seoul time.They will lend support in searching for the Malaysian Airlines Boeing 777 that disappeared somewhere over waters between Malaysia and Vietnam last week.The plane disappeared less than an hour aft
NIS helper faces arrest for evidence fabrication

Mar 14, 2014

Prosecutors on Friday sought an arrest warrant for a Chinese national on charges of forging Chinese immigration records to help Seoul’s main spy agency frame a North Korean defector for espionage, prosecution officials said. The 61-year-old ethnic Korean with Chinese nationality, only identified as his surname Kim, is under suspicion of forging immigration records purporting to be the defector’s and handing them over to the National Intelligence Service, they said.After putting Kim under an emer
Suspected AI infection found in dog

Mar 14, 2014

A dog was found to have been infected by the bird flu virus in Korea, the Agriculture Ministry said Friday, sparking concerns that the disease may affect mammals. Meanwhile, avian influenza was also detected in a goose in Gwacheon, just outside Seoul. Authorities banned the movement of poultry in southern parts of Seoul after confirming the infection.The dog at a poultry farm in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province tested positive for antibodies against the H5 avian influenza virus after eating i
Leaked personal data transferred to dealers

Mar 14, 2014

Some of the leaked personal client information from South Korea’s major credit card firms, possibly amounting millions of cases, appears to have been transferred to personal data dealers, sources said Friday, contradicting assurances by regulators that the leak had been contained.The largest-ever data theft came to light in January when an employee from a personal credit ratings agency, the Korea Credit Bureau, was found to have stolen the sensitive personal information, including resident regis
Leaked personal data spread to information dealers

Mar 14, 2014

Some of the leaked personal client information from South Korea's major credit card firms, possibly amounting millions of cases, appears to have been transferred to personal data dealers, sources said Friday, contradicting assurances by regulators that the leak had been contained. The largest-ever data theft came to light in January when an employee from a personal credit ratings agency, the Korea Credit Bureau (KCB), was found to have stolen the sensitive personal information, including reside
Court upholds defamation jail term for ex-police chief

Mar 13, 2014

South Korea’s top court on Thursday upheld a lower court’s ruling to sentence a former police chief to eight months in jail for making defamatory remarks against late President Roh Moo-hyun.Former National Police Agency head Cho Hyun-oh was found guilty of defamation for saying in 2010 that Roh committed suicide a day after investigators found his slush funds under a borrowed-name account.The Supreme Court rejected the defendant’s final appeal against a verdict given by two lower courts, saying
Man arrested for growing pot in Seoul

Mar 13, 2014

A Korean man has been taken into police custody for growing marijuana plants on the rooftop of a building in downtown Seoul, police said Thursday.The 45-year-old suspect is accused of cultivating 18 marijuana plants worth approximately 27 million won ($25,200), for four months from August 2013. Police found them in a greenhouse on the rooftop of a six-story commercial building in central Seoul, which had been converted into a marijuana farm. The greenhouse was equipped with ventilation, lighting
Prosecutors to resume CNK stock-rigging investigation

Mar 13, 2014

The prosecution said Thursday that it would resume its investigation into a stock-rigging scandal involving a diamond mine as soon as a key suspect returns after fleeing overseas for two years.Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office said it will arrest Oh Deok-gyun, head of CNK International, on March 23 when he arrives from Cameroon. The 48-year-old suspect left for the African country in 2012, just before authorities announced their plan to investigate the stock manipulation scandal. Oh is
Sex crimes against minors soars in recent years

Mar 13, 2014

The number of sex crimes against minors rose sharply in the past five years but more than 40 percent of convicted offenders were released on probation, government data showed Thursday.According to the data by the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, the number of sex crimes, such as rape, indecent assault and brokering prostitution, against children and juveniles rose 52.7 percent from 1,068 cases in 2007 to 1,631 in 2012.The findings are based on a research conducted by the state-run Korean
Old school ties ― boon or bane?

Mar 12, 2014

Korea is a country of connections. Connections through geographical origin, school and even military service play a significant role in Korean society. Some people even consider church as a place to make new connections, a strategy that seems to have paid off for some during the Lee Myung-bak administration. Among the diverse connections, those formed by attending the same school, a relationship called hakyeon, wields perhaps the strongest influence long after graduation. For 34-year-old office
Exhibitions shed light on sex slaves, East Sea

Mar 12, 2014

Two exhibitions in Seoul cast new light on some of the flashpoints in the tumultuous Korea-Japan relations: the East Sea and comfort women. The East Sea is the Korean name of the body of water between Korea and Japan, known more widely as the Sea of Japan abroad. The naming of the sea has become a point of recent contention between the two countries, after the U.S. state of Virginia passed a bill requiring all public school textbooks to juxtapose the East Sea with the Sea of Japan. It now sits o
Mysterious rocks could be first Korean meteorites in 70 years

Mar 12, 2014

Interest is growing in the two mysterious black rocks found at Korean farms, with early analysis results indicating that at least one may be a meteorite.On Wednesday, a second rock suspected of being a meteorite was found in Jinju, South Gyeongsang Province. The owner of the farm where the new rock was found, located 4 kilometers from the farm where a suspected meteorite was found on Monday, has requested that it be analyzed. If scientists confirm that the stones are meteorites, they will become