An IT entrepreneur recently indicted for abusing his employees is now under investigation for allegedly attempting contract killing.In September 2015, Yang Jin-ho, chief of several local online storage service firms and robot developer K-Technology, allegedly asked a Buddhist monk to murder the brother-in-law of his ex-wife who at the time was going through a divorce suit against him.Police found that Yang paid 30 million won to the monk, who told police that Yang asked him to stab the husband o

With the authorities scrambling to improve industrial safety measures, Rep. Lim Lee-ja of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party on Wednesday released data that showed subcontracted workers at power plants are vulnerable to industrial accidents.According to figures Lim received from the Ministry of Employment and Labor, 20 workers killed at power plants -- Korea South-East Power, Korea Western Power, Korea Midland Power, Korea Southern Power, and Korea East-West Power Corp. -- between 2014 and

External sources accounted for 75 percent of South Korea's ultrafine dust air pollution in January, a state-run environment agency said Wednesday. South Korea saw a drastic rise in the average level of ultrafine dust particles, those smaller than 2.5 micrometers in diameter, in between Jan. 11 and 15. According to the National Institute of Environmental Research, a think tank under the Ministry of Environment, external sources from China, Mongolia, North Korea and Japan were responsible for 75 p

After two years of bitter partisanship and personal attacks, President Donald Trump will call for unity and cross-party cooperation in Washington during Tuesday’s State of the Union address, a message likely to ring hollow with Democrats determined to block his push for a border wall.Trump’s prime-time address comes at a critical moment in his presidency. He pushed his party into a lengthy government shutdown over border security, only to cave to Democrats. With another shutdown deadline looming

Woori clinches ad deal with Blackpink, KB renews contract with BTS

A high court on Friday sentenced former South Chungcheong Province Gov. An Hee-jung to 3 1/2 years in prison for raping his female aide, overturning a lower court’s not-guilty ruling, in the country’s highest-profile case amid the ongoing #MeToo movement. (Yonhap)The Seoul High Court ruled that An, who was once considered a strong presidential contender, had used his authority to sexually assault the victim, citing sufficient evidence to prove that Kim’s sexual freedom was violated against her w

A suspected case of foot-and-mouth disease was reported in North Chungcheong Province on Thursday, amid escalating concerns over the highly contagious animal disease spreading in the country ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday.The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs said Thursday that a cattle farm in Chungju reported that a cow had showed symptoms of FMD, such as drooling and blisters.As the cow tested positive for FMD in an initial inspection, quarantine authorities culled 11 cows

Former conservative party leader Hong Joon-pyo has announced his bid for leadership of the Liberty Korea Party, ramping up competition in the race.“I will run (for the party’s leadership), and it is right for me to do so. I have never seen an administration fall this fast. Only I can counter the current government,” Hong said during a publication event for his biography in Yeouido, western Seoul.“Today marks the starting point of the last challenge in my life.”(Yonhap)While declaring his bid at

Former national short track speed skating coach Cho Jae-beom was sentenced to 18 months in prison on Wednesday over repeated assaults against Olympic champion Shim Suk-hee and other athletes.The Suwon District Court in Suwon, 45 kilometers south of Seoul, handed down the sentence in an appeals trial. Cho had earlier received a 10-month term, against which he unsuccessfully appealed. Cho Jae-beom (Yonhap)The court noted that Cho once had an indictment over an earlier assault charge suspended but

Kim Bok-dong, a South Korean victim of sexual slavery by the Japanese military during World War II and a symbol of the fight against wartime violence, died late Monday, bringing the number of survivors to 23. She was 92.Kim, who was at the forefront of raising awareness about Japanese military sexual slavery and campaigning to end violence against women around the world, died at 10:41 p.m. Monday at Yonsei Severance Hospital in Seoul, according to the Korean Council for Justice and Remembrance.

The US Justice Department on Monday unveiled sweeping charges against Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei in two cases likely to ratchet up tensions between the two superpowers -- including that of a top executive arrested in Canada on a US warrant.The department unveiled 13 charges against Huawei Technologies, its chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou -- the daughter of the company's founder who is currently out on bail in Canada -- and two affiliates related to violating US sanctions on Ira

Sohn Suk-hee, the president of cable channel JTBC and a popular news anchor, offered company money to keep a freelance journalist from going public about an assault Sohn allegedly committed, a vernacular newspaper reported Monday.Freelance journalist Kim Woong, 48, filed a complaint with the police last week accusing Sohn, 63, of punching him in the face several times during a dinner meeting in Seoul on Jan. 10.Sohn Suk-hee (Yonhap)Kim reportedly submitted medical documentation to the police ind

Former Supreme Court Chief Yang Sung-tae, currently in detention, has hired another lawyer to prepare for what will be a tough legal battle over allegations that he politically influenced trials to lobby the previous government, sources said Sunday.Yang recently brought in judge-turned-lawyer Lee Sang-won in addition to his two legal representatives, as he appears likely to face an unprecedented corruption probe as the former head of the country’s judiciary.Former Supreme Court chief Yang Sung-t

The South Korean government said Friday it will launch a special probe team to look into sexual violence and other human rights violations in the country's sports community, following a series of claims by athletes that they were assaulted by their coaches.Sports Minister Do Jong-hwan, Education Minister Yoo Eun-hae and Gender Equality Minister Jin Sun-mee convened for a ministers meeting on social affairs and discussed measures to prevent and eradicate violence in sports. Sports Minister Do Jon

Seoul is focusing on the military aspects of inappropriate actions by Japanese military planes, in an apparent move to avoid the matter being politicized by Tokyo, following another close-proximity flight by a Japanese patrol plane. On Wednesday, Seoul’s Ministry of National Defense revealed that Japan’s P-3 patrol plane flew at an altitude of 60 to 70 meters and 540 meters away from South Korean destroyer Daejoyeong in international waters near Ieodo, a submerged rock near Jeju Island. Military