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A foreigner who illegally stayed in Korea and remitted money to a foreign terrorist organization was sentenced to prison in the appeals court.



According to the legal community today (13th), the 3rd Criminal Division of the Daejeon District Court (Presiding Judge Moon Bo-gyeong) upheld the original judgment sentenced to 1 year and 6 months in prison in the appeal against Mr. A (29), who was charged with violating the Terrorist Financing Act.



Mr. A is accused of remitting money to Mr. B, an executive of the terrorist group 'Tabhid Bar Jihad (TvJ), using a borrowed-name account while staying in Korea from May 21, 2020 to August.



He remitted money worth 1.4 million won three times through a mobile phone application while contacting TvJ members through social network service (SNS), and in July 2021, he sent $250 to Mr. B in the same way (approximately Korean currency). 300,000 won) but failed.



In response, Mr. A, who stood in court, claimed, "I did not know that the group that sent the money was a terrorist group."



After looking at this, the first trial judge sentenced to 1 year and 6 months in prison and a fine of 1.42 million won, saying, "If you look at the conversations exchanged with the members of the organization, it seems that you committed the crime even knowing (it is a terrorist group)." The act of helping the survival of a terrorist group is a serious crime that is highly likely to undermine the peace and security of the country regardless of the amount, but Mr. A is not reflecting."



However, both the prosecution and Mr. A, who were dissatisfied with the verdict in the first trial, filed an appeal, and in the second trial, the judge said, "I don't see any special circumstances to change the sentence." The appeals of both sides were dismissed.



On the other hand, although the Republic of Korea is considered one of the 'terror-free countries' free from attacks by international terrorist groups, it is pointed out that it is not safe as there are not a few cases where it is caught while providing remittance support to terrorist groups in Korea.



According to an official from the legal profession, "It costs 300,000 won to purchase a gun and 700,000 won to heavily arm one person in Central Asia, where many terrorist organizations are concentrated." Considering the fact that it can cause harm, we are severely punishing it.”



(Photo = Getty Image Korea)