It is understood that Shinsegae Department Store has effectively abandoned legal responses, including compensation lawsuits, regarding the bomb threat posted last year on August 5 at its Myeong-dong main branch, which caused over 4,000 employees and customers to evacuate and mobilized around 240 police and fire personnel.
Although the incident occurred during business hours, resulting in sales losses of approximately 600 million won, it is pointed out that there are practical limits to response because the perpetrator was a 'juvenile offender' under the age of criminal responsibility who cannot be held legally liable.
According to relevant industry sources on the 12th, Shinsegae Department Store has no plans for legal action, including compensation claims, against A, who posted the bomb threat on that day, and A's family.
This is because A was a juvenile offender aged 14 or younger at the time of the crime, making litigation futile. Although financial losses were incurred due to business disruption from the bomb threat, it is difficult to hold A legally responsible, and claiming compensation from A's family could instead lead to criticism of 'excessive response,' potentially damaging the company's image and brand value, according to internal company sentiment.
Although the crime of 'public intimidation,' which punishes acts threatening the lives and bodies of unspecified numbers of people starting in March last year, has been implemented with penalties (up to five years imprisonment or a fine of up to 20 million won), the lack of separate penalty standards for juvenile offenders is also cited as a background factor making it difficult for the company to respond.
However, it is understood that Shinsegae Department Store is preparing legal responses regarding a bomb threat case involving a suspect in their 20s that occurred later in the same month.
The Seoul National Police Agency filed a compensation lawsuit against B, a man in his 20s, who posted a threat to "blow up Shinsegae Department Store" on YouTube last year, causing waste of public power such as dispatching police special forces. On the 1st, the Seoul Central District Court ruled that B must pay 12.56 million won to the state.
In this case, since the incident occurred before business hours and normal operations resumed after police search, there were difficulties in calculating specific damage amounts, but it is understood that legal action will be pursued considering the suspect was an adult. A Shinsegae Department Store official stated, "We plan to respond after confirming the final results of the lawsuit between the police and B and conducting internal legal review."
The retail industry is paying close attention to the outcome of this case's handling. If such incidents are met with only token punishments, the likelihood of recurrence increases. Recently, major retailers have undertaken large-scale renovations of department stores and comprehensive shopping malls, leading to a significant increase in customers and a rise in foreign tourist visits; thus, facility bomb threat crimes could become serious business risks.
Accordingly, major retailers are expected to take measures such as establishing specific criteria for calculating business losses from subsequent copycat crimes and pursuing compensation claims.
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