From
Send to

Actor Ryu Si-won ordered to pay 7 mln won fine for assaulting wife

Sept. 10, 2013 - 21:24 By 윤민식
A local court ordered actor-singer Ryu Si-won Tuesday to pay 7 million won ($6,450) in fines for assaulting his wife and tracking her whereabouts with a GPS device.

Ryu, 40, was charged with planting a GPS tracking device on his wife's car and tracking her whereabouts for eight months starting in May 2011. He was also indicted on charges of slapping his 29-year-old wife in the face several times when she protested the surveillance.

"Based on the sound of flesh clashing with flesh in the recording submitted as evidence, it is clear that (Ryu) assaulted his wife even though it may have been quite lightly," Judge Lee Seong-yong said as he handed down the sentence at Seoul Central District Court.

Prosecutors had sought an eight-month prison term for Ryu, but the court decided to hand down a lighter sentence because the actor had no record of past crimes, the judge added.

During the trial, Ryu partially acknowledged that he had tracked his wife's movements, but claimed he had done so to protect his family. He denied the charges of assault.

The couple married in October 2010 and have one daughter. They are currently going through divorce proceedings. (Yonhap News)