Habitual thief jailed for 8th time just 1 month after latest release

A man who has been jailed seven times in the past three decades was sentenced to another prison term by the local court, this time committing theft just a month after being released from incarceration.

The Jeonju District Court said Monday it has ruled against the 60-year-old suspect's appeal and upheld a lower court ruling to sentence him to two years in prison. He was indicted for stealing cash, a wallet, slippers and other items from offices and employee living quarters of various businesses in South Chungcheong Province and North Jeolla Province, from Aug. 7-12.

He committed the crime just a month after being released from jail in July, after receiving seven separate prison terms for the same crime of larceny.

This time, he was indicted for violating Article 5-4 of the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes, which punishes habitual larceny and robbery. He appealed the earlier ruling by saying the punishment was disproportionately severe compared to his crime, which the court rejected.

"The defendant repeated larceny over 30 years and received seven different jail terms to serve close to 10 years, yet he repeated the same crime just a month after being released. ... Even considering various factors for sentencing, it cannot be regarded that the earlier ruling was unreasonably harsh," the court said in its ruling.