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Jeonju District Court sentenced to 10 years in prison for fraud
A cult member in his 70s who deified himself and deceived him into believing that he had healing powers was sentenced to heavy punishment for stealing 1.6 billion won from about 10 Catholic church members over a nine-year period.
On the 20th, Jeonju District Court Criminal Division 6 Judge Kim Seo-young announced, “I sentenced Mr. A (70, female), who was indicted on fraud charges, to 10 years in prison.” From July 2014 to April 2022, Mr. A gave 1.672 billion won to 14 church members, including Mr. B, who participated in a private prayer meeting hosted by him on 10,113 occasions to his and his son’s accounts under the name of a so-called ‘atonement gift.’ He was handed over to trial on charges of receiving over ten thousand won.
According to the prosecution, Mr. A introduced himself to Mr. B and others as “a person who received special spiritual power from God,” comparing himself to Jesus. In this process, Mr. A said, “If you sin, you will get sick and something bad will happen to you. If you do not atone for the sins of your ancestors, bad things will happen to your descendants as well. If you offer an offering for atonement, the pain and difficult things will be resolved.” I lied. Mr. A used the money he received from the victims in this way for living expenses.
Throughout the trial, Mr. A insisted, “I did not notify the victims of their misfortune or promise them results through prayer, and I never told them that I was endowed with spiritual powers or special qualifications.” At the same time, Mr. A protested, saying, “The people who prayed made offerings voluntarily,” and “It was the heart of prayer that was important, not the number or amount of offerings.”
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“Taking advantage of the victim’s desperate state”
However, the court did not accept Mr. A’s claim. It was based on sermons and phone call transcripts given by Mr. A at prayer meetings between 2014 and 2021.
In the recording, Mr. A said, “If you do not believe in me, you will never be saved because you have blasphemed the Holy Spirit.” “I was a patient with terminal stomach and uterine cancer, but by God’s will, I was cured without any treatment.” “When I was admitted to the hospital, the doctor diagnosed me with an incurable disease. Patients said they had seen God and asked me to heal them, and they said, “You can get pregnant just by touching your stomach.” Among these, Mr. A also included a statement that he predicted the COVID-19 outbreak because the picture of Jesus in his home had a sign of the Precious Blood (Jesus’ blood stains) in the shape of a coronavirus.
It was found that many of the victims themselves or their family members suffered from mental illnesses such as bipolar disorder and depression, as well as diseases that are difficult to cure with modern medicine, such as brain tumors and hearing impairment. Some are said to have suffered financial difficulties due to the bankruptcy of their spouse’s business due to the 1997 International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout crisis.
Accordingly, they participated in Mr. A’s prayer meeting through the introduction of another church member. The prosecution said that afterward, when Mr. A talked about miraculous cases of healing others and laid hands on people, everyone said ‘Amen’, which made them believe in Mr. A more. The laying on of hands refers to the officiant placing his or her hands on the believer’s head during prayer.
According to the investigation, Mr. A was baptized at the cathedral in August 1983 and worked as an ordinary church member for about 40 years. I had never received any professional education or training from the Catholic Church. As the issue arose, the Catholic Diocese of Jeonju excommunicated Mr. A in May of last year.
The court said, “The defendant knew that he had no ability to heal, but his method of committing the crime was vicious, taking advantage of the victim’s desperate state.” “The sentence was determined taking into account the fact that no measures were taken for recovery,” he said.
Junhee Kim (kim.junhee@joongang.co.kr)
1. As an expert on religious cults and their tactics, how can you explain the methods used by the cult leader to deceive church members and convince them to participate in his prayer meetings?
2. How do you think the mental state of vulnerable individuals, like those mentioned in the article who were dealing with financial difficulties or illnesses, made them easy targets for this type of fraud?
3. What legal implications do you see for individuals who claim to have special spiritual powers or abilities and use them to take advantage of others financially?
4. As a member of the Catholic Church, what steps can be taken to prevent something like this from happening again in the future?
5. Do you think that excommunication from the church is an effective way to deal with these types of situations, or are there other measures that could have been taken earlier on?
6. In your experience, how can individuals protect themselves from falling prey to religious fraud and ensure they are participating in authentic prayer groups or meetings?
