Police staff check a public restroom for spy cameras at a park in Gwangju in this June 7, 2023 file photo provided by Gwangju Metropolitan City Government. Yonhap

A Chinese national was sentenced to 1 1/2 years in prison Thursday in an appeals trial on charges of secretly filming more than 230 people with cameras hidden in motel rooms in Seoul last year.

The 28-year-old had originally been sentenced by a district court to two years in prison, but an appeals panel at the Seoul Central District Court reduced the sentence, citing he reached settlements with all identified victims and has no record of criminal punishment in Korea.

The Chinese was indicted for installing secret cameras in seven rooms at three motels in Seoul's Gwanak district and filming 236 guests naked or having sex on about 120 occasions between April and September last year.

The court also ordered the defendant to undergo 40 hours of sexual harassment treatment and banned him from working at child-related facilities for three years. (Yonhap)