North Korea's 'Squid Game' smuggler sentenced to death

Pyongyang: A North Korean man was sentenced to death by firing squad for distributing illegal copies of the Korean language Netflix drama “Squid Game, while a student has been granted life imprisonment for buying a copy.

According to international media, a North Korean man has been sentenced to death for distributing copies of the hit Netflix series Squid Game. His execution will reportedly be carried out by the firing squad. Others have been sentenced to life imprisonment and hard labor for watching the show illegally.

Radio Free Asia reported that the 'smuggler' acquired a copy of the show in China and brought it back to North Korea. He allegedly sold copies of the show on USB flash drives.

In addition, seven students and an unknown number of teachers and administrators were punished in the crackdown, facing sentences including life imprisonment and five years of hard labor.

Squid Game grabbed eyeballs with its edge-of-the-seat story. The nine-episode series tells the story of a group of desperate people who sign up to play mysterious children’s games in the hope of winning a hefty cash prize.

Squid Game has become Netflix's biggest series launch ever. The South Korean survival drama, which premiered on September 17, recently hit 111 million views on the OTT platform. Directed by Hwang Dong-hyuk, Squid Game surpassed Netflix's popular English series Bridgerton, which garnered 82 million views in its first 28 days.