Former baseball pitcher given suspended sentence for gambling

SEOUL, Feb. 5 (Yonhap) -- A former baseball pitcher was sentenced Thursday to a
one-year suspended jail term and community service on charges of routinely
gambling on the Internet.
Kang Byung-kyu, 37, a star pitcher in the 1990s and currently a famous
entertainer, was indicted on charges of betting billions of won on an overseas
gambling sites last year. South Korean law criminalizes those who routinely
gamble on the Internet.
"The defendant pleads guilty and admits to the charges. There is enough evidence
to convict him, considering his transaction records submitted by the
prosecutors," the Seoul Central District Court said in the verdict.
The court also ordered Kang to 160 hours of community service.
Kang had allegedly gambled on the popular on-line card game "baccara" from
October 2007 to August 2008. He wired 2.6 billion won (US$1.9 million) to the
sites, losing 1.2 million won ($870,000), investigators said.
brk@yna.co.kr
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