Trivial Evil (2)
That's right. As Kwon Shinyong's mother, Kim Majin had every reason to worry like that. To an ordinary person, legal procedures seem impossibly complicated and time-consuming—sometimes dragging on for years. From her perspective, the moment those photos spread, Kwon Shinyong's life would be over, regardless of whether Bang Jiseon ended up in prison. On top of that, the caption Bang Jiseon had threatened to attach was absurd: "Nude photo of QS Group Chairman's granddaughter." She probably never imagined that message would reach me, but then again, she clearly wasn't thinking straight. Or perhaps her already unstable mind had simply deteriorated further.
In any case, since Bang Jiseon had openly mentioned QS Group, this was no longer just a personal matter between Kwon Shinyong and Kim Majin. Preventing damage to the image of the chairman's family—and by extension, the entire group—was clearly the responsibility of the Central Management Headquarters. From this point forward, I would handle the case not as an individual, but as the Chief of Junggyeongbon.
Kim Majin's fears would never come to pass. Our country's laws were not so lenient toward criminals, and I was an expert in wielding them. To reassure her, I deliberately shook my head slowly.
"Don't worry. Shinyong hasn't replied to the message yet, has she?"
"No. I told her to stay quiet in case it provoked Bang Jiseon into spreading the photos immediately. She left school early like she was running away and she's been trembling at home ever since, unable to do anything."
"You did well. Give me two hours. I'll have Bang Jiseon in prison by the end of the day."
Hope and surprise flickered across Kim Majin's face, which had been filled only with sorrow.
"Really? Can it be done that quickly?"
"Of course. You can stay home with Shinyong if you prefer, or you can watch me work from here."
"There's nothing I can do for her right now even if I stay by her side. If I see how things progress, I might feel a little more at ease. Would it be all right if I stayed here, as long as I'm not in the way?"
"Of course."
I moved from the conference table to my desk, turned on the computer, and opened the complaint draft I had started the day before. The first thing I did was change the title from "Complaint" to "Accusation." Filing a complaint and filing an accusation were essentially the same act—reporting a crime to investigative authorities. The only difference lay in the relationship between the reporter and the crime. If the victim reported it directly, it was a complaint; if a third party with no direct connection reported it, it was an accusation.
That meant Kwon Shinyong would have to step forward personally if we proceeded with a complaint. From what Kim Majin had said, her daughter was in no condition to do so. Having me handle the complaint as her representative would have been the cleanest approach, but even that required obtaining her signature on the power of attorney and appointment forms. These were exactly the kinds of time-consuming formalities Kim Majin had been worried about.
Investigative agencies generally paid more attention to complaints than accusations, but this bullying case could proceed smoothly even as an accusation. We had Bang Jiseon's handwritten reflection acknowledging her past acts of cruelty, the notebook recording events from the victim's perspective, and the threatening message we had just seen. The evidence of criminal activity was overwhelming. The assault had continued over a long period, and she had even committed illegal filming and blackmail by threatening to distribute the photos. The nature of the crime was exceptionally vicious.
At this point, once a prosecutor was assigned, it wouldn't matter whether the case was filed as a complaint or an accusation. If anything happened to Kwon Shinyong, the prosecutor's own position would be at risk. My immediate task was to get a prosecutor assigned to this case as quickly as possible. Once that happened, the prosecution would move swiftly—emergency arrest, request for detention warrant, seizure of electronic devices that might contain the illegal footage.
Less than thirty minutes after sitting down at the computer, the accusation document was complete. I called in a staff member from the Chief's office and instructed them to print the document I had just written and make copies of all the secured evidence, then bind everything together. While that was being prepared, I took out my phone and made a call.
"Attorney Oh, could you handle something urgent for me?"
- Yes, young master. Just tell me what it is and I'll move immediately.
When speed was essential, personal connections were invaluable. In that regard, Oh Il-mu was second to none.
"You're well acquainted with Chief Prosecutor Park Daejin at the Seoul Western District Prosecutors Office, aren't you?"
- Of course. He called just a few days ago asking if there were any law firms worth joining after his retirement. Is there an urgent case at the Western District Prosecutors Office?
"Yes. I'm about to file an accusation at Mapo Police Station. As soon as we receive the case number, I'll text it to you. Because of the risk of further serious harm, an emergency arrest will be made, and I'd like you to ask Chief Prosecutor Park to ensure that the detention warrant and search-and-seizure warrant are issued today."
- If it's serious enough for an emergency arrest, wouldn't the warrant be requested anyway without special intervention?
"We need to move quickly to prevent additional harm, and since the suspect is a minor, there might be unnecessary delays. That's why we're preparing the accusation perfectly on our end so there are no legal loopholes to exploit."
A sigh came through the phone, followed by Oh Il-mu's reply.
- The child must have done something truly despicable. I'll make sure there are no delays at the Western District Prosecutors Office.
"Thank you."
After ending the call with Oh Il-mu, I took the completed accusation file that the staff had prepared and headed to Mapo Police Station with Kim Majin. The moment I identified myself as the Chief of Junggyeongbon at the information desk in the first-floor lobby, the police chief came rushing down. After that, things moved quickly. When I explained it was an urgent case and presented the accusation, the chief skimmed through it and immediately assigned an investigative team. Soon we were on our way to Bang Jiseon's house.
Thud, thud, thud.
"Is Bang Jiseon here? This is the police."
At the detective's forceful knock and shout, the door opened. The first person to appear was not Bang Jiseon, but Bang Changho, whom I had seen in the Chief's office earlier. He must have been unable to go to work because of his daughter's situation and had been rotting away at home with worry.
"Chief?"
"Deputy Director Bang, I seem to be seeing you quite often these past two days. Is your daughter home?"
Bang Jiseon, who had followed behind Bang Changho, answered instead.
"Dad, what's going on? Isn't it too much for that man from yesterday to come all the way to our house? And the police too? Are you even impersonating officers now?"
At Bang Jiseon's defiant attitude, the large detective standing behind me presented his police ID.
"We're not impersonating anyone. Bang Jiseon, you'll need to come with us."
Only then did Bang Jiseon's face harden as she grasped the seriousness of the situation.
"Why are you doing this? We finished talking yesterday. I already submitted my withdrawal form and wrote an apology letter. Why are you doing this?"
"After writing such a detailed apology, you still sent something like this to Shinyong?"
When I held out my phone showing the captured message she had sent, Bang Jiseon's hands trembled.
"Why does that man even have this?"
She raised her arm as if to throw my phone to the floor.
"If you throw that right now, we'll add property damage to the charges. You don't seriously think that file only exists on this phone, do you? It's probably on your phone too. Return my phone and voluntarily submit yours to the detective here, then come with us to the station quietly."
"What if I refuse?"
Well, she didn't need me to answer that. The detectives who had come with me had received direct orders from the police chief to bring Bang Jiseon in no matter what. With me—the person the chief was watching—standing right there, they acted without hesitation.
Click, click.
Right in front of Bang Changho, handcuffs were snapped onto Bang Jiseon's wrists behind her back. I had told her not to make things difficult for herself, but what kind of hardship was this compared to the suffering she had inflicted?
"Kyaaaah! Why are you doing this?!"
Why? Because you committed a crime, so the police are arresting you. As Bang Jiseon's scream echoed, the Miranda rights were read to her while Bang Changho stood frozen, his mouth opening and closing wordlessly as he stared into the distance.
"You have the right to an attorney. You have the right to remain silent. Ah, what else was there? Stay still!"
"Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law."
"Ah, that's right. Thank you, Counselor. Did you hear all that?"
Bang Changho, who had spent the past two days desperately trying to prevent this from happening to his daughter, collapsed to the floor. Surprisingly, the person who moved to support him was Kim Majin. The saying that couples grow alike clearly didn't apply here. How had that foul-mouthed brat married such a kind woman?
After that, everything proceeded exactly as I had planned. Bang Jiseon was immediately taken to the police station and placed in a holding cell. Before the sun set that day, the detention warrant and search-and-seizure warrant were requested and issued. She was transferred to a detention center, and all electronic devices that might contain Kwon Shinyong's nude photos were seized. A rushed digital forensic examination revealed that she had not only kept the original phone where the photos were first taken but had also backed them up on her desktop PC. She had truly intended to distribute them if I hadn't intervened.
Bang Jiseon's trial was ongoing, but the premonitory judgment documents I had seen had never been wrong. There was no doubt she would be sentenced to a minimum of three years and six months and a maximum of seven years. That meant she would have to spend at least three and a half years in a juvenile correctional facility, and if her conduct inside was not exemplary, she might not be released for up to seven years. Since Bang Jiseon was in her second year of high school, the earliest she would see the outside world again would be at twenty-two or twenty-three. Starting life at that age with a criminal record. From what I had heard, she had been diligent with her performance evaluations, but while her friends would be walking university campuses, she would be released as a middle school graduate. That was assuming things went well for her in prison. If she continued her defiant attitude inside, she might not get out until her twenties were already behind her.
A few days later, Bang Changho personally submitted his resignation to me. The reason stated was that he felt too ashamed to continue working at the company. He claimed his mistakes were so great that he would not even accept his severance pay. Strictly speaking, Bang Changho himself had done nothing wrong. Still, asking him to keep coming to work felt cruel, so as the person with personnel authority, I accepted his resignation.
Thus, the daughter who had used her father's position to bully her friends had not only ruined her own life but had also shattered her entire family.
After the bullying case was concluded, Kim Majin visited the Junggyeongbon Chief's office once more, bringing Kwon Shinyong with her.