SEOUL — A South Korean court recently upheld the sentences of two U.S. Forces Korea soldiers who were convicted earlier this year for attacking taxi drivers in separate incidents.
Pvt. Andre M. Fisher, 22, stationed at Camp Casey with the 4th Chemical Company, was sentenced to two years in a South Korean detention facility following his conviction in May on charges of robbery and causing damage to public property, for a Nov. 19, 2010, attack against a cab driver in Seoul.
The second soldier, Pvt. Antonio M. Magana, stationed at Osan Air Base with the 138th Movement Control Team, 25th Transportation Battalion, was sentenced in Suwon District Court in May to six years’ imprisonment for bodily injury resulting from robbery. According to court records, Magana stabbed a taxi driver in Pyeongtaek on Jan. 1 and stole 68,000 won, or approximately $64, from him, according to court records.
The Seoul High Court, South Korea’s second-highest judiciary, upheld their sentences on Aug. 25.
Both men have filed appeals with South Korea’s Supreme Court, said Oh Minseok, a spokesperson and judge for the Seoul High Court. He said it could take the top court between two and four months to issue a ruling on their appeals.
“We stand by the ROK (Republic of Korea) Court’s decision,” 2nd Infantry Division spokeswoman Master Sgt. Reeba Critser said in a statement. “This type of behavior is absolutely not in keeping with the values for which U.S. soldiers stand.”
