Former NCT member Taeil appeals court ruling, citing excessive sentence despite admitting guilt
Both former NCT member Taeil (30, legal name Moon Taeil) and prosecutors have filed appeals following the court's initial ruling in a high-profile sexual assault case.
On July 16, Taeil submitted his appeal to the Seoul Central District Court’s Criminal Division 26, presided over by Chief Judge Lee Hyun Kyung. The two co-defendants who were involved in the crime also appealed the previous day.
Prosecutors likewise contested the ruling, stating the sentence was too lenient. They had initially sought a seven-year prison term, emphasizing the severity and gravity of the offense. “The nature of the crime is extremely serious and morally reprehensible,” prosecutors argued.
On July 10, Taeil was taken into custody immediately after the court sentenced him and the two co-defendants to three years and six months in prison each. The trio was convicted of aggravated quasi-rape under the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Sexual Crimes.
“The defendants took advantage of the victim’s incapacitated state to commit the crime. The nature of the offense is particularly egregious,” the court noted in its ruling. “The victim is believed to have suffered significant psychological trauma as a result.”
Taeil and his co-defendants admitted to all charges during the proceedings. In his plea for leniency, Taeil stated, “I want to contribute positively to society and will do my best to live a better life.”
The case stems from an incident in June of last year, in which Taeil and the co-defendants were accused of gang-raping a foreign woman who was unconscious at the time. DNA from all three perpetrators was found on the victim’s body.
Source: https://www.allkpop.com/articl…e-despite-admitting-guilt
Taeil (real name Moon Tae-il), a former member of the group NCT who was arrested on special charges of quasi-rape, filed an appeal against the first trial's sentence.
According to the legal community, Taeil submitted an appeal on the 16th. As the prosecution also submitted an appeal earlier, a sentence dispute between the two sides is expected to take place in the second trial.
The Seoul Central District Court's Criminal Agreement Department 26 (Chief Judge Lee Hyun-kyung) sentenced a total of three people, including Taeil, to three and a half years in prison on charges of special quasi-rape under the Sexual Violence Punishment Act on the 10th.
At the time, the court said, "The defendants committed a bad crime by committing adultery at the residence of the defendant, identified only by his surname Lee, using the victim's drunken inability to protest. However, we normally considered the fact that the defendants were first-time offenders, acknowledging the crime, and not wanting to be punished in agreement with the victim," he said.
Accordingly, Taeil, who had been on trial without detention, was arrested in court.
Taeil was indicted without detention in March on charges of sexually assaulting a drunk foreign woman with two acquaintances in June last year. The three, including Taeil, admitted all of the charges at the first hearing held on the 18th of last month, and the prosecution demanded a seven-year prison term.
In his closing statement, Taeil said, "I regret the most about the hurt I gave to the victim and I am sorry. I am sorry to everyone who may have felt disappointed by this incident, he said. "If you give me leniency, I think it is the last opportunity in my life, and I will do my best to live whatever activities that contribute to society."
Meanwhile, Taeil debuted as NCT's unit NCT U in 2016 and worked as a member of NCT and its affiliated group NCT 127. However, in August last year, he was expelled from the team after it was revealed that he was accused of sex crimes.
