An image from a previous sentencing in North Korea [stock](Image: Japan TBS news)
A “big shot” couple who ran a bike shop in North Korea were executed – because their business was successful. The couple, in their 50s, were accused of being “arrogant” and “anti-republic”, according to reports.
They were publicly killed by firing squad in the capital Pyongyang in front of hundreds of people, including children, who were said to be forced to watch.
The couple were officially registered with the Central Committee of the General Federation of Trade Unions in Sadong District, but authorities accused them of running a lucrative operation dealing in electric bicycles, battery-powered motorcycle parts and standard pushbikes.
Kim Jong Un and his regime continue to carry out executions [stock](Image: KCNA VIA KNS/AFP via Getty Image)
Insiders say they were raking in huge profits on the side and soon earned a reputation locally as “big shots”. And disgruntled locals called them “arrogant” and were left fuming over high wholesale prices and dodgy quality goods.
They were hit with a barrage of accusations from authorities, including violating the Rejection of Reactionary Thought and Culture Act, illegally moving foreign currency through an external organisation, and spreading anti-state messages, the Daily Mail reports.
They were arrested in early August and jointly interrogated before being slapped with the death penalty by the evil regime in early September. Around 20 others connected to the pair were also reportedly sentenced to either exile or re-education.
Residents were reportedly ordered to watch the execution in the Mirim area of the city, as one source explained: “All managers, such as market managers and stall managers, were required to attend, so over 200 residents gathered at the time.
“Residents who had no place to leave their children had no choice but to bring them out. Middle school students passing by also joined the adults without any resistance and witnessed the horrific scene.”
North Korean teens apparently being sentenced to hard labour in public for distributing K-dramas (Image: Japan TBS news)
They added that, “It’s clear that the intention is to show that anyone who goes even slightly beyond the limits permitted by the state can be punished as an example,” which has left business people frightened that it could happen to them next.
The reign of terror implemented by Kim Jong Un’s regime appears to have no end. A UN Human Rights Office report published in September found an increased use of the death penalty in the isolated country.
“It pains me to say that if DPRK continues on its current trajectory, the population will be subjected to more of the suffering, brutal repression and fear that they have endured for so long, said the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk.
While James Heenan, head of the UN office working on North Korea, added: “We do have credible evidence that individuals have been executed – not just for watching K-dramas. The crime is for distributing at a certain level, foreign information, foreign media.”
We reported last year how a 22-year-old man was thought to have been publicly executed in 2022 simply for listening to K-pop, watching films and sharing them.
It is understood North Korea carried out the killing so it could flex its intimidating power as it doubled down on the “malign” influence of the West.
The country’s ban on K-pop began under the nation’s former leader, Kim Jong-il as part of a brutal campaign to guard its population from Western culture, which has only intensified under Kim Jong-un’s rule.
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