25.05.11.Today News : Goyang Faces Backlash Over Retroactive 2.7B KRW Sewage Charges / Nurse Assistant Caught Stealing Baby’s Gold Necklace During IV Treatment

1. Goyang Faces Backlash Over Retroactive 2.7B KRW Sewage Charges

Goyang City in Gyeonggi Province is facing strong opposition from citizens after announcing its plan to retroactively charge around 2,000 households up to three years' worth of sewage fees based on a recent survey conducted in March.

According to the city on the 11th, a full investigation was carried out until the end of March this year on households that had not been charged sewage usage fees. This was due to instances where homes had been connected to public sewage pipelines through previous sewer maintenance projects but were not billed due to administrative oversights.

Goyang City is controversially trying to collect 2.7 billion won in missing sewer bills at once.

The investigation revealed that about 2,000 households had not been billed, and the amount of unpaid fees over the past three years reached up to 2.7 billion KRW. The city has since issued prior notices asking residents to pay the unpaid fees for the most recent three years, which fall within the statute of limitations. The average amount billed per household is around 1.35 million KRW.

However, public response has been cold. Many residents expressed anger and frustration at being suddenly asked to pay several million won at once. One citizen complained, "This is an administrative lawsuit case. It was the city’s mistake." Another said, "It's fair to pay if it was missed, but demanding it all at once is too harsh," and called for a more reasonable solution.

A Goyang City official admitted, "Some districts were omitted during data entry in the sewer maintenance project," but added, "We are reviewing the possibility of fee reductions through legal consultation."

The city plans to collect public opinions and consider measures such as establishing reduction criteria and allowing installment payments to minimize public dissatisfaction.

One-line summary : Goyang residents are pushing back after the city announced retroactive sewage charges totaling 2.7 billion KRW due to past administrative errors.

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2. Nurse Assistant Caught Stealing Baby’s Gold Necklace During IV Treatment

A nurse assistant is facing severe criticism after being caught stealing a gold necklace from a 25-month-old child who was receiving IV treatment at a clinic.

According to a report on JTBC’s "Incident Room" on the 9th, a parent shared that their child had a high fever and was taken to a local clinic for treatment on March 19. The child received IV fluids in the treatment room, but upon leaving, the family realized the one-don gold necklace the child was wearing had disappeared.

A nursing assistant steals a baby's necklace

The parent, referred to as Mr. A, immediately requested to view the hospital’s CCTV footage. The video showed the child being carried on the grandmother's back, with a nurse assistant walking behind them. The nurse was seen reaching toward the child's neck and lifting something up.

What she lifted was the child’s necklace. In the process of stealing it, she even caused a scratch on the child’s neck.

The nurse assistant, who had been working at the clinic for two years and had a good reputation among staff, initially denied the theft during the police’s first investigation on March 23. However, she later admitted to taking the necklace and returned it. She reportedly asked for a settlement, but the child's parent refused.

Online users who heard about the incident reacted with outrage, saying, "This doesn’t seem like the first time," "How many times has she done this before?" and "She looks way too skilled at it."

Under Korean law, even defamation or false information about others through the internet can be subject to punishment. In this case, the nurse’s act of theft, especially from a toddler, drew widespread condemnation and calls for strict punishment.

One-line summary : Public outrage is growing after a nurse assistant was caught stealing a gold necklace from a toddler receiving IV treatment.