“BTS Jungkook’s hat for 10 million won” controversy: “We have received no lost item report”
The seller of Jungkook’s hat said, “No phone call for 6 months after reporting the lost property, so I acquired the item.” However, the National Police Agency and Ministry of Foreign Affairs said otherwise.
While a person, who claimed they were a public official at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, uploaded a post on the secondhand market on Oct 17th to sell a hat belonged to BTS Jungkook for 10 million won, it was confirmed that the hat has never been reported as lost to the police.
According to the National Audit data submitted by Lee Jae-jung, a member of the National Assembly’s Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee, the National Police Agency said, “We have received no report on the acquired item (hat)” when asked whether the staff of Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported any lost item regarding the controversial post.
The National Police Agency said that all acquired items reported to lost and found agencies are registered and managed in the “LOST112 System,” but this specific “acquisition” has not been confirmed in the system.
There were no hats in the “Lost and Found Management Register” submitted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, according to the Democratic Party of Korea’s Lee Jae-jung’s office. The seller said they acquired the hat around September 2021 in a sales post titled “BTS Jungkook wore the hat himself.” However, from May 7th, 2021 to February 28th, 2022, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ lost and found management register, where lost and found items were recorded, did not have any report about a hat acquisition.
The seller posted on the secondhand trading site Bungaejangter on Oct 17th, saying, “I am selling the hat that BTS Jungkook wore himself.” The seller even posted his Foreign Ministry official certificate to certify it.
As a result, regardless of whether the hat is actually a hat worn by Jungkook, the seller may be subject to criminal charges such as embezzlement of possession, fraud, and impersonation of government officials. If it is true that the hat belongs to Jungkook, it could be a crime of embezzlement of stolen goods under criminal law because it was embezzled without reporting the lost goods to the police. Even if they post a scam post and it is not Jungkook’s hat, they can still be subject to fraud under criminal law. In addition, if the public official ID attached to the post is fake, the crime of impersonating a government official will also be added.
Rep. Lee said, “We are concerned that the Korean people will deepen their distrust in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and our government if they fail to deal with this situation quickly even though it has drawn attention around the world,” and stressed, “The Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ own resolution is good, but we need to get cooperation from investigative agencies to end the controversy quickly.”
Meanwhile, according to the Lost and Found Act, “objects” such as items left by others, items occupied by mistake, and lost livestock are subject to Article 253 of the Civil Code. This provision states, “If the owner does not claim the right within six months after the public announcement by law, the acquirer acquires ownership.”
However, at this time, those who have acquired the lost article must report the fact to the police station and submit the acquired article within seven days. If they continue to have the acquired material without a report or submit the acquired material to the police station after 7 days, they cannot acquire ownership even if the owner does not appear.
If the owner does not appear within six months after reporting to the police, the police station is required to notify the acquirer by phone or text message. The seller did not separately disclose in the sales post whether they reported it to the police within seven days of acquisition or a separate notice or text message that they had acquired ownership of the hat.
Source: Nate
