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Seoul Southern District Court. / Photo from AsiaToday DB

A driver in his 40s who assaulted a postal mail carrier and struck a responding police officer with his car before fleeing has been sentenced to prison.

Judge Go Cheol-man of Criminal Division 14 at the Seoul Southern District Court sentenced Hwang, 43, who was arrested and indicted on charges including special obstruction of official duties, to 1 year and 2 months in prison on July 21.

"The defendant showed an attitude of hostilizing and endangering postal public officials and police officers working for the public," the bench explained in its sentencing remarks. "The defendant committed this crime again despite having a considerable number of prior convictions for violence involving obstruction of official duties." The court added that it took into account, as a favorable mitigating factor, that conditions such as the defendant's bipolar disorder affected the incident.

Hwang was charged with assaulting postal mail carrier A on a road near Ujangsan Station Intersection in Gangseo-gu, Seoul, at around 2:00 p.m. on April 21, then striking a police officer dispatched to the scene with his vehicle before fleeing for about two kilometers. Driving his passenger car at the time, Hwang suddenly stepped out, dragged A—who was waiting for the traffic light ahead—off his motorcycle, threw him to the ground, and assaulted him by grabbing his collar. A received treatment at a nearby hospital for injuries to his back and neck. The police officer struck by the car suffered a wrist injury.

                                                                                                              Lee Ha-eun