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Elabidi Abdul Moritz (32), a Moroccan immigrant who has lived in Korea for 10 years, experienced a shocking incident on October 19th last year in Itaewon, Yongsan-gu, Seoul, where he works at a restaurant. While talking with a friend who was trying to catch a taxi, the taxi driver reported to the police that “an illegal Muslim immigrant is harassing a customer.” The police arrived, and what began as a common case of discrimination in Moritz’s life turned into a traumatic ‘incident’ for him and his family over the next six months.
According to Moritz and the police’s on-the-spot arrest notice on the 30th, the responding officers began aggressively shoving Moritz while speaking to him informally. When Moritz tried to record the situation with his phone, the police confiscated it. The police then tasered Moritz four times after knocking him down. He was handcuffed and taken to the Yongsan Police Station. The initial report of ‘an illegal immigrant harassing someone’ disappeared, and Moritz was charged with obstructing official duties for allegedly grabbing an officer by the collar.
“When I first heard about it, I didn’t fully believe my husband, and now I feel guilty about it,” said Moritz’s wife, Jeong Eul-lim (36). She initially thought the police had a reason to use a taser on her husband. However, the investigation records obtained with the help of the Moroccan embassy raised many questions.
On the morning of October 19th, CCTV footage shows a police officer from Itaewon Police Station shoving Moroccan immigrant Elabidi Abdul Moritz (32) in Itaewon-dong, Yongsan-gu, Seoul. Provided by Moritz’s wife, Jeong Eul-lim.
The police persistently asked Moritz, “Didn’t you grab the officer by the collar?” in various ways until they got him to say, “I’m sorry for grabbing the collar.” Moritz, unfamiliar with the term ‘collar’ and under the tense investigation atmosphere, wrote the statement in confusion. There is no equivalent word for ‘collar’ in Arabic. Moritz later insisted to Jeong that he never grabbed an officer by the collar.
Jeong stopped working to prove her husband’s innocence. She found CCTV footage capturing the entire incident. When she contacted the investigator, she was told, “There is no CCTV covering the scene.” Jeong responded, “I have it,” and the investigator replied, “Oh, really? Please give me a copy.”
During the second interrogation, with Jeong present, Moritz consistently stated that he did not grab or hit the police officer. Considering the CCTV footage and Moritz’s statements, the police eventually dropped the charges against him on the 23rd of last month, six months after the incident. The Itaewon police chief personally called Moritz to apologize.
Since the ‘incident,’ Moritz’s family life has been disrupted. Moritz, who worked as a chef at his uncle’s Moroccan restaurant in Itaewon for 21 years, has avoided Itaewon for fear of encountering the police officers involved. Jeong, who works at an eyelash salon, couldn’t work for two months due to hand tremors and had to take more time off to prove her husband’s innocence.
Jeong is most upset that the taxi driver reported her husband as a ‘Muslim illegal immigrant’ based solely on his appearance, and that the police treated him like a criminal without listening to him or checking his ID. Jeong said, “Honestly, I don’t think this would have happened if my husband were a white blonde person.”
This was not Moritz’s first negative encounter with law enforcement in Korea. In 2021, Moritz was mistakenly labeled an illegal immigrant and detained due to an error in his visa guidance by the Ministry of Justice. When Jeong protested, explaining that her husband had a marriage immigration visa and they had a son, a ministry official asked, “Is the child really yours?” They never received an apology for the administrative error.
Moritz’s biggest concern is losing the trust of his family and friends. After the incident, Jeong’s parents questioned what he did to provoke such a police response. “My husband’s uncle’s restaurant is the oldest Moroccan restaurant in Itaewon, and all the Moroccans come here. It was a source of pride for my husband to have a Korean family, but being treated as an illegal immigrant in front of the restaurant was humiliating,” Jeong said.
Moritz has told his wife several times since the incident that he can no longer live in Korea, something he never said in his 10 years of living here. Jeong said, “We have always lived cautiously to avoid the prejudices associated with being ‘Muslim’ and ‘multicultural,’ but this incident made me resentful. I wonder how many more foreigners suffer injustices without the help of Koreans like me.”
As of 2023, there are 2.51 million foreigners residing in Korea, making up about 5% of the total population. Experts say that while Korea has already become a ‘migration society,’ social awareness and institutional support are lacking.
Attorney Kim Ju-hyeong (Majung Law Firm Foreign Center) said, “When handling cases involving foreigners, the police often have prejudices based on nationality and treat them more discriminately, thinking they can’t respond legally like Koreans. Public institutions need to establish procedures for dealing with foreigners through internal guidelines.”
Majung provides legal consultations for foreigners living in Korea who need legal assistance. Please contact us at the number below for more detailed consultations.
Elabidi Abdul Moritz (32), a Moroccan immigrant who has lived in Korea for 10 years, experienced a shocking incident on October 19th last year in Itaewon, Yongsan-gu, Seoul, where he works at a restaurant. While talking with a friend who was trying to catch a taxi, the taxi driver reported to the police that “an illegal Muslim immigrant is harassing a customer.” The police arrived, and what began as a common case of discrimination in Moritz’s life turned into a traumatic ‘incident’ for him and his family over the next six months.
According to Moritz and the police’s on-the-spot arrest notice on the 30th, the responding officers began aggressively shoving Moritz while speaking to him informally. When Moritz tried to record the situation with his phone, the police confiscated it. The police then tasered Moritz four times after knocking him down. He was handcuffed and taken to the Yongsan Police Station. The initial report of ‘an illegal immigrant harassing someone’ disappeared, and Moritz was charged with obstructing official duties for allegedly grabbing an officer by the collar.
“When I first heard about it, I didn’t fully believe my husband, and now I feel guilty about it,” said Moritz’s wife, Jeong Eul-lim (36). She initially thought the police had a reason to use a taser on her husband. However, the investigation records obtained with the help of the Moroccan embassy raised many questions.
On the morning of October 19th, CCTV footage shows a police officer from Itaewon Police Station shoving Moroccan immigrant Elabidi Abdul Moritz (32) in Itaewon-dong, Yongsan-gu, Seoul. Provided by Moritz’s wife, Jeong Eul-lim.
The police persistently asked Moritz, “Didn’t you grab the officer by the collar?” in various ways until they got him to say, “I’m sorry for grabbing the collar.” Moritz, unfamiliar with the term ‘collar’ and under the tense investigation atmosphere, wrote the statement in confusion. There is no equivalent word for ‘collar’ in Arabic. Moritz later insisted to Jeong that he never grabbed an officer by the collar.
Jeong stopped working to prove her husband’s innocence. She found CCTV footage capturing the entire incident. When she contacted the investigator, she was told, “There is no CCTV covering the scene.” Jeong responded, “I have it,” and the investigator replied, “Oh, really? Please give me a copy.”
During the second interrogation, with Jeong present, Moritz consistently stated that he did not grab or hit the police officer. Considering the CCTV footage and Moritz’s statements, the police eventually dropped the charges against him on the 23rd of last month, six months after the incident. The Itaewon police chief personally called Moritz to apologize.
Since the ‘incident,’ Moritz’s family life has been disrupted. Moritz, who worked as a chef at his uncle’s Moroccan restaurant in Itaewon for 21 years, has avoided Itaewon for fear of encountering the police officers involved. Jeong, who works at an eyelash salon, couldn’t work for two months due to hand tremors and had to take more time off to prove her husband’s innocence.
Jeong is most upset that the taxi driver reported her husband as a ‘Muslim illegal immigrant’ based solely on his appearance, and that the police treated him like a criminal without listening to him or checking his ID. Jeong said, “Honestly, I don’t think this would have happened if my husband were a white blonde person.”
This was not Moritz’s first negative encounter with law enforcement in Korea. In 2021, Moritz was mistakenly labeled an illegal immigrant and detained due to an error in his visa guidance by the Ministry of Justice. When Jeong protested, explaining that her husband had a marriage immigration visa and they had a son, a ministry official asked, “Is the child really yours?” They never received an apology for the administrative error.
Moritz’s biggest concern is losing the trust of his family and friends. After the incident, Jeong’s parents questioned what he did to provoke such a police response. “My husband’s uncle’s restaurant is the oldest Moroccan restaurant in Itaewon, and all the Moroccans come here. It was a source of pride for my husband to have a Korean family, but being treated as an illegal immigrant in front of the restaurant was humiliating,” Jeong said.
Moritz has told his wife several times since the incident that he can no longer live in Korea, something he never said in his 10 years of living here. Jeong said, “We have always lived cautiously to avoid the prejudices associated with being ‘Muslim’ and ‘multicultural,’ but this incident made me resentful. I wonder how many more foreigners suffer injustices without the help of Koreans like me.”
As of 2023, there are 2.51 million foreigners residing in Korea, making up about 5% of the total population. Experts say that while Korea has already become a ‘migration society,’ social awareness and institutional support are lacking.
Attorney Kim Ju-hyeong (Majung Law Firm Foreign Center) said, “When handling cases involving foreigners, the police often have prejudices based on nationality and treat them more discriminately, thinking they can’t respond legally like Koreans. Public institutions need to establish procedures for dealing with foreigners through internal guidelines.”
Majung provides legal consultations for foreigners living in Korea who need legal assistance. Please contact us at the number below for more detailed consultations.
- Majung Law Firm Foreigner Center: 02-3143-1158
- Online Consultation: https://majungforeign.kr/contact/?lang=en
