A man who purposefully gained weight in order to evade military service was sentenced to prison.

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For purposefully binge eating to gain weight and be deemed unfit for mandatory military service, a 26-year-old South Korean man was recently given a one-year prison sentence.

In South Korea, serving in the military is a serious matter. You must serve in the army for at least 21 months if you are a healthy adult male between the ages of 18 and 35, regardless of whether you are a well-known musician, a successful actor, or a billionaire. Postponing the mandatory duty is your best option, but you will eventually have to do it. You are exempt, though, if you are deemed unsuitable for service due to a medical condition. According to reports, one young South Korean guy binge-ate and gained weight in an attempt to avoid enlisting in the military. Regretfully, things didn’t go as planned, and he now faces a year in prison.

Just before the military conscription medical, the anonymous man doubled his daily food intake and drank a lot of water to increase his body weight. He was found guilty of purposefully acquiring weight. The individual apparently followed a diet that a buddy who was found guilty of being an accomplice in this case had prepared. The individual adhered to a set regimen and continuously checked his weight, according to evidence found by South Korean officials.

According to documents submitted to the Seoul Eastern Dongbu District Court, the 26-year-old man’s initial physical examination in October 2017 gave him a grade 2 rating, qualifying him for military service. However, due to his protruding body, he received a grade 4 rating in June 2023. The man, who stood 169 cm tall and weighed 102.3 kg with a body mass index of 35.8, was deemed ineligible for mandatory military service.

Authorities deemed the accused man’s weight increase strange, and an inquiry showed an attempt to avoid mandatory military service without a valid reason. Despite this, the accused man was permitted to serve in a non-combat capacity at a government organization that he could commute from home. While his friend received a six-month prison sentence with a two-year suspension, he received a one-year sentence with a two-year suspension. It’s interesting to note that the accomplice insisted on his innocence during the trial, saying he never believed his friend would actually carry out the plan.

The South Korean Court defended its light punishment by pointing out that the accused had no criminal history, acknowledged their fault, and committed to serving in the military. Those found guilty of attempting to evade military service face a maximum sentence of three years in jail.