Ex-Governor Ahn Hee-jung in South Korea Acquitted of Sexual Assault

Seoul: Ahn Hee-jung a former governor of a South Korean province and one-time presidential contender was acquitted of sexual assault by coercion in one of the high profile cases to emerge from the MeToo movement in the country. Ahn Hee-jung, the former governor of South Chungcheong province, was accused of rape and assault by his secretary Kim Ji-Eun, who made the allegations during an 18-minute interview with South Korean news channel JTBC in March.

The 54-year-old politician was indicted in April on charges of forcing Kim to have sex with him four times and molesting her multiple times between the middle of 2017 and early 2018 in Seoul and while on overseas business trips. The Seoul Western District Court on Tuesday said that there was not sufficient evidence to prove Ahn used his position to have sexual relations with the plaintiff. It also did not accept the victim’s argument that he had physically subdued her so that she was unable to resist, Yonhap news agency reported. (IANS)