Volleyball player admits to draft dodging

OK Financial Group OKman’s opposite striker Jo Jae-sung plays during a match with Seoul Woori Card Woori Won on Dec. 21. (Yonhap)

Days after local media reported that volleyball player Jo Jae-sung tried to avoid his mandatory military service, OK Financial Group OKman’s opposite striker admitted his guilt in a social media post late Wednesday night, saying he had attempted draft evasion with a local broker.

“I’m sincerely sorry. I’ve committed an unforgivable crime. I was ignorant because I only knew volleyball,” the Instagram post read, calling it a case of "blurred judgment."

All able-bodied South Korean men between the ages of 18 and 28 are required to serve in the country’s armed forces for about 18-21 months.

Jo is being charged with contacting a military broker and getting a reexamination in June, where he showed false symptoms of epilepsy. He was deemed unfit to serve as a soldier in the military due to health issues, allowing him to serve as a social service agent as an alternative form of service.

According to local reports, the broker was arrested on Dec. 21 for breaching the Military Service Act. Jo was one of 10 professional athletes who allegedly were discovered as attempting to dodge military service. The names of the others have not been revealed.

Jo has been excluded from the team’s training and matches and is expected to be banned from the V League’s All-Star game in January next year.

By Park Jun-hee(junheee@heraldcorp.com)