A man packs boxes in a warehouse. (123rf)
A man packs boxes in a warehouse. (123rf)

A logistics center employee in South Korea received a suspended prison sentence for stealing parcels containing high-end electronics worth about 120 million won ($80,000) while working at a distribution facility, a court said Sunday.

The Cheongju District Court sentenced the man in his 30s to one year and two months in prison, suspended for three years, and ordered him to complete 160 hours of community service, according to the ruling.

Prosecutors said the employee stole packages 127 times between February and May last year while working at a logistics center in Heungdeok-gu, Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province.

The man, who was responsible for sorting parcels, targeted boxes containing expensive electronics such as smartphones, smartwatches and Bluetooth earphones, investigators said.

He removed the items from the delivery process by skipping barcode scans or leaving shipping labels unattached, setting the packages aside before secretly taking them.

The stolen electronics were later resold through fences and other intermediaries, authorities said.

The court said the defendant carried out the theft in an organized manner with two acquaintances, making the crime serious given the scale of the losses.

However, the judge cited compensation to the victims, a settlement with the affected parties and the defendant's voluntary confession to investigators as mitigating factors. The court also noted that the defendant personally obtained only part of the proceeds from the stolen goods.


hnpark@heraldcorp.com