Top court strikes down not guilty verdict for Navy captain charged with raping female subordinate

SEOUL, March 31 (Yonhap) -- The Supreme Court on Thursday struck down a not guilty verdict for a Navy captain charged with raping a subordinate female officer, sending the case back to the military high court for a retrial.

In the first trial, the captain was sentenced to eight years in prison for raping the female lieutenant junior grade, but the military appeals court found him innocent on grounds there is no evidence of violence or other threats involved in the alleged rape.

According to court records, the victim received an abortion after being repeatedly raped and sexually harassed by another superior, a lieutenant commander, after she was assigned to the unit in 2010. She reported her situation to the captain, but he misused his authority and allegedly raped her.

The lieutenant commander was sentenced to 10 years in prison in the first trial, but the military appeals court also acquitted him. The Supreme Court plans to deliver a verdict for the lieutenant commander later Thursday.

odissy@yna.co.kr
(END)