38-year-old Jo indicted for leaving sexually defamatory graffiti targeting BoA in Seoul
Jo, a 38-year-old woman, was indicted for leaving malicious, sexually offensive graffiti targeting singer BoA across various locations in Seoul, according to media reports on July 24th.
The 7th Criminal Division of Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office filed non-custodial charges on the 20th against a 38-year-old woman named Jo for insult and property damage.
Jo is accused of leaving sexually defamatory graffiti about BoA using a permanent marker eight times on bus stop signboards and electronic displays in the Gangnam and Gangdong districts of Seoul. Prosecutors determined that these acts publicly insulted BoA and damaged public facilities.
It has been reported that Jo has a prior history of repeatedly defaming other celebrities through graffiti and has been fined multiple times for property damage.
At the time, BoA’s fans shared the locations and photos of the graffiti on online communities, reporting them to the police, local governments, and BoA’s agency at the time, SM Entertainment. Some fans even went to the sites to erase the graffiti themselves.
Seoul Gangnam Police Station received a complaint from BoA’s side in June last year and conducted an investigation before forwarding the case to prosecutors in July.
Considering that the graffiti was done in crowded public places with wide exposure, was repeated multiple times with malicious intent, and that BoA’s side requested strict punishment, prosecutors decided to indict Jo.
