The Supreme Court has affirmed the life imprisonment sentence for South Korean pastor Si Young Oh, also known as Steve Oh, who was found guilty of qualified trafficking for exploiting minors through his church in Pampanga. The pastor had lured the young victims into joining his theology program, only to subject them to forced labor under the pretense of religious training.

In a decision penned by Associate Justice Samuel H. Gaerlan, the Supreme Court’s Third Division upheld the conviction of Si Young Oh for violating the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003, also known as Republic Act No. 9208. The ruling confirmed that all elements of trafficking had been met, including the use of fraud and deception in the recruitment of the victims, all aged 17 at the time.

A Church Turned Trap

Si Young Oh, affiliated with the Korean Christian Presbyterian General Assembly in Seoul, moved to the Philippines in 2008, where he took charge of a theology school in Pampanga. Though he operated the institution without proper government permits, that didn’t stop him from recruiting minors with promises of free theology education and a path to becoming pastors or missionaries.

However, instead of the spiritual training the teens had anticipated, they found themselves toiling on construction projects for the church, doing grueling manual labor with little or no compensation. It wasn’t until April 15, 2013, that the truth came to light. A joint operation by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) led to the rescue of the three minors and the arrest of Si Young Oh.

False Promises and Exploitation

The pastor argued in his defense that the construction work was voluntary and part of the young recruits’ religious training. But the Supreme Court was not convinced, stressing that trafficking laws protect minors regardless of consent. The court highlighted that trafficking involves the recruitment, transportation, or transfer of individuals for exploitative purposes through threats, coercion, deception, or abuse of power—regardless of whether the victims believed they were consenting.

With the victims’ religious beliefs and eagerness to pursue a spiritual calling, the pastor took advantage of their vulnerability, convincing them to work under conditions that amounted to forced labor. The Court found that Si Young Oh’s actions clearly met the criteria for qualified trafficking, which applies when the victims are minors or when there are at least three victims involved.

A Long Road to Justice

Si Young Oh was initially convicted by the Regional Trial Court of Angeles City, Pampanga in 2017, and his appeal was rejected by the Court of Appeals in 2021. With the Supreme Court’s recent affirmation of the life sentence, there are no more legal options for the pastor to contest his conviction. In addition to the life imprisonment, the Court also imposed a fine of PHP 2 million on Si Young Oh and ordered him to pay PHP 1.8 million in damages to the victims.