The Supreme Court has upheld the conviction and life imprisonment sentence of a South Korean pastor for the illegal recruitment of minors into his church and subjecting them to forced labor.

South Korean pastor Si Young Oh, also known as “Steve Oh,” for qualified trafficking. The pastor was found guilty of recruiting minors into his church under false pretenses, subjecting them to forced labor.

In a decision penned by Associate Justice Samuel H. Gaerlan, the Supreme Court’s Third Division upheld the guilty verdict Pastor Si Young Oh of the Korean Christian Presbyterian General Assembly based in Seoul, South Korea for violation of Republic Act No. 9208 (Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003) by exploiting vulnerable minors.

Court records showed that Si Young Oh relocated to the Philippines in 2008. He became the head of a theology school in Pampanga but later admitted to operating it without proper government authorization.

The pastor recruited three minors—referred to as AAA, BBB, and CCC—all 17 years old, promising them free theology education with the goal of becoming pastors or missionaries.

However, instead of providing religious training, Si Young Oh subjected the minors to hard labor, compelling them to work on church construction projects for little to no pay.

On April 15, 2013, the minors were rescued during a joint operation by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), leading to Si Young Oh’s arrest.

The Regional Trial Court of Angeles City, Pampanga convicted Si Young Oh of qualified trafficking in 2017. This ruling was subsequently upheld by the Court of Appeals in 2021. Si Young Oh appealed the decision to the Supreme Court, which has now affirmed the lower courts' findings.

The Supreme Court ruled that all elements of trafficking under RA 9208 were present. It emphasized that trafficking occurs when individuals are recruited, transported, or transferred through coercion, deception, abuse of power, or other means for exploitative purposes such as forced labor, slavery, or prostitution.

The Court classified the crime as qualified trafficking, which carries a penalty of life imprisonment, because it involved minors and multiple victims.

The Court found that Si Young Oh, either directly or through an assistant, recruited and transported the minors to his church in Pampanga under fraudulent pretenses. Exploiting their religious beliefs and vulnerable circumstances, he promised theology classes but instead forced them to perform manual labor without adequate compensation.

The Court stressed that even if the minors appeared to willingly participate in construction work, their consent, given their age and circumstances, was not valid. It reiterated that a minor’s consent, even absent overt coercion or deception, cannot be considered as freely given.

Apart from life imprisonment, the Supreme Court imposed a PHP 2 million fine on Si Young Oh. He was also ordered to pay a total of PHP 1.8 million in damages to the victims.

This decision underscores the Court’s commitment to safeguarding the rights of children and ensuring that individuals who exploit vulnerable persons—whether under religious, educational, or other pretenses—are held accountable to the full extent of the law.