BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — A man sentenced to house arrest for attacking a 13-year-old girl with a pocketknife in 2019 as she was attending an Indiana University violin camp is now awaiting deportation to South Korea.
Nineteen-year-old Dongwook Ko was taken into custody last week by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. The South Korean resident pleaded guilty in July to criminal confinement while armed with a deadly weapon, and was sentenced to eight years of house arrest.
Ko had pleaded guilty to criminal confinement while armed with a deadly weapon for the July 2019 incident when he attacked the girl with a pocketknife, leaving her with cuts.
Court documents say on July 12, 2019, the girl was practicing violin at the IU music building when a 17-year-old she knew came into the room. She said Ko told her that her teacher wanted to see her.
She followed him to the fourth floor of the building where she said he led her into a locker room. Documents say Ko then pinned the girl to the wall and began choking her when she screamed and fought back.
During the struggle, police said Ko used a knife to cut the girl.
According to the documents, a worker who was in the building heard the screams and rushed to help, pulling Ko off the girl.
The girl then ran to get help, and Ko was able to escape from the employee.
The 13-year-old girl was taken to the hospital and treated for 10 cut wounds to her hands and legs.