Wristwatch overshadows South Korea sect leader's coronavirus apology

Lee Man-hee, founder of the Shincheonji Church of Jesus the Temple of the Tabernacle of the Testimony, speaks during a news conference at its facility in Gapyeong, South Korea, March 2, 2020. Yonhap via REUTERS

GAPYEONG, South Korea (Reuters) - When the elderly leader of a South Korean religious sect knelt before the nation on Monday, he had hoped to defuse public anger over his church's role in spreading the coronavirus.

Yet Lee Man-hee's apology for the national "calamity" instead whipped up more outrage - due to a watch he was wearing.