A 50-year-old man was arrested for attacking neighbors and damaging vehicles by throwing soju bottles while intoxicated, northern Gwangju police said Friday.The man, identified by his surname Kim, allegedly pushed a woman in her 80s in the apartment corridor, hit a convenience store clerk in the head with a soju bottle and attacked people on four other occasions earlier this week. He also damaged a taxi and parked vehicles by throwing soju bottles and broke a surveillance camera in the apartment

A woman in her 70s was killed and her husband was injured in a fire at their farmhouse in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, on Friday morning.A stray cat is believed to have caught fire when the husband was burning garbage outside the house. It spread the fire to the house.  (Yonhap)“I saw a cat on fire jumping, and then the house caught fire and spread all over in an instant,” the husband told police, adding that the house and the garbage-filled drum were over a meter apart.Police are investigating th

Internet users have been warned not to click on links with titillating titles such as “leaked images of a YouTube star,” as their computers could become infected with malicious code. Computer security firm AhnLab said it found an attempt to spread malicious code by luring internet users with fake images of a YouTube celebrity whose lewd photos were leaked online last month. A link leading to malicious code was recently posted to an online community with the sensational title and sexually explici

A special investigation team of the National Police Agency found that nearly 100 police officers took part in the orchestrated writing of pro-government comments on the internet under the Lee Myung-bak administration.Ninety-five police officers from the national security, intelligence and public relations divisions of various police stations and the cyber investigation unit of the NPA’s national security bureau were involved in the opinion rigging that took place between January 2008 and Decembe

The ruling Democratic Party of Korea, the government and the presidential office agreed to a six-month grace period for the revised law on shorter work hours, Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon said Tuesday.Under the revised law passed in February, companies with 300 or more employees are required to reduce the maximum work hours to 52 hours per week, from the current 68 hours, starting July 1.Violators of the law are subject to jail term of up to two years or fines of up to 20 million won ($18,090).The

North Korea has invited Singaporean companies to visit the country for future business opportunities, a Singaporean news outlet reported Tuesday.The North’s Korea Committee for the Promotion of International Trade sent an invitation addressed to Michael Heng, a former associate professor at Nanyang Technological University who now heads a business consultancy firm, digital news provider Today.The invitation came on June 13, one day after the historic summit between US President Donald Trump and

Police investigating alleged molestation and coercion of female models are looking into how pornography is produced and traded through “closed-door” photo shoots at studios.Seoul police began the probe last month after YouTube star Yang Ye-won revealed that she was sexually abused and coerced into posing for lewd photos three years ago. The photos were recently leaked online.Seoul police are investigating 43 suspects in nine cases of alleged molestation and distribution of pornography. They incl

Seven in 10 Koreans feel pedestrian safety is not guaranteed within apartment complexes, and 60 percent think road traffic rules should apply to roads within the complexes as well, according to survey results released Thursday.Currently, road traffic rules do not apply to car accidents within apartment complexes as they are private property. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission conducted an online survey of 699 people on traffic s

Jeju police said they arrested Thursday three suspects in the murder of a Chinese construction worker surnamed Pi.The suspects, who allegedly killed Pi at his home with a weapon early Thursday, were nabbed at Jeju airport as they tried to leave the island. (Yonhap)The three were among five people caught on surveillance camera footage going in and out of Pi’s home.The five suspects, all Chinese nationals, were found to be staying in Korea illegally after entering the country without visas from la

Presidential chief of staff Im Jong-seok sued a right-wing commentator for calling him “jusapa,” a term for proponents of North Korea’s founding ideology of “juche,” or self-reliance.The Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office said Thursday that it recently summoned and questioned columnist Jee Man-won on why he referred to Im as a “diehard jusapa” and “vicious commie” on his website.Prosecutors plan to decide on whether to indict Jee after finding out if he intended to slander Im. Jee Man-wo

North Korea is holding between 80,000 and 120,000 political prisoners, some for religious reasons, the US State Department said in a report released on Tuesday.The department’s annual International Religious Freedom Report for 2017 revealed 1,304 cases of alleged religious freedom violations in North Korea last year, while detailing the harsh treatment of political and religious prisoners, as well as persecution of Christians. “The government continued to deal harshly with those who engaged in a

A right-wing commentator was arrested on Wednesday for libel against a cable television news anchor and reporters who uncovered an influence-peddling scandal involving former President Park Geun-hye.The Seoul Central District Court issued a warrant to detain Byun Hee-jae, citing the risk that he may destroy evidence and potentially cause harm to the victims.Byun, 44, is accused of spreading false information by writing on his online media outlet and recent book that broadcaster JTBC fabricated t

Outgoing National Assembly Speaker Chung Sye-kyun said Tuesday he felt “dreadful and ashamed” at the parliament’s failure to adopt a resolution supporting last month’s inter-Korean summit agreement called the Panmunjeom Declaration.“I am perplexed beyond words. … Politics should not be self-centered,” Chung said in a CBS radio interview on the last day of his two-year term as the National Assembly speaker.“Who wouldn’t want the North Korean nuclear problem to be properly dealt with and solved?”T

A prosecutor was suspended for four months after investing in stocks with money borrowed from a suspect under investigation.The Justice Ministry said on Tuesday it suspended the prosecutor surnamed Jung for breach of duty and demeaning the prosecutors’ office.Jung borrowed money from a suspect under investigation at another prosecutors’ office last year, and used it to invest in stocks under someone else’s name. (Yonhap)While serving as the head of a prosecutorial branch, Jung made insulting and

A dog meat dealer resumed business at Seongnam’s Moran Market by bringing back its butchery equipment which the city government removed last week, continuing a legal battle to maintain its business.Under an administrative order, city officials on Friday dismantled the last remaining dog slaughter facility in what used to be Korea’s largest dog meat market amid much media attention. City officials dismantle the last remaining dog slaughter facility in what used to be Korea’s largest dog meat mark