South Korean men are subject to compulsory military service, and a 21-year-old man actually became so ruthless to himself just to evade service that he drank only a single glass of water each day to drastically lose weight. Although he succeeded in dodging military service, he could not avoid being sentenced to six months in prison, suspended for one year.
According to comprehensive reports from Korean media like "Naver," the incident occurred in July 2023 when a 21-year-old South Korean man, not wanting to serve in the military, came up with the idea of "starving himself to lose weight" before the enlistment physical examination, surviving on just a glass of water each day in an attempt to exploit a loophole in military requirements.
In the end, he was successful, with a height of 176.2 cm, a weight of 49 kg, and a BMI of 15.7, being categorized as "underweight" and thus had his military service postponed.
In September of the same year, the man received a surprise physical exam notice, and he once again used the same method to drop his weight to 47.7 kg, attempting to once again evade service, and was reassigned to serve as a "public service worker."
However, on the 19th, the Suwon District Court in South Korea ruled that the man had attempted to evade military service through deliberate weight loss. The court also considered the motive, means, and seriousness of his crime, finding it to be a major violation of the "Military Service Act." He was sentenced to six months in prison, suspended for one year.