Killing a co-worker, kidnapping his wife, and raping her...a life sentence in one's 40s

ⓒYonhap News Agency

A man in his 40s who killed a co-worker he usually interacted with and raped his wife was sentenced to life in prison.

On the 16th, the Gwangju District Court sentenced Park (44) to life imprisonment on charges of murder, imprisonment, and violation of the Sexual Violence Punishment Act. He also ordered the disclosure of Park's personal information for 10 years and the attachment of location tracking electronic devices for 20 years.

"Park committed the crime with an unconvincing motive, such as killing the victim because he was told that he seemed to ignore her," the court said. "In particular, the shock and fear of the victim's wife and 4-year-old child who witnessed his crime must have been so great that it is difficult to predict, and he should live with terrible memories for the rest of his life."

"The victim was forcibly harassed and raped without having time to grieve for her husband's death," he said. "It is judged that it is difficult to gauge the shock, fear, and wound."

"If Park goes back to society, the risk of recidivism is very high, and the possibility of correction in prison is also small," he said. "It is considered considerable to repent of mistakes and live a life of atonement to victims and their families while permanently isolated from society."

Park is accused of stabbing a man in his 40s to death in July last year at a house in Dongmyeong-dong, Mokpo-si, Jeollanam-do. He molested A's wife B by threatening her, and all of these crimes were witnessed by B's 4-year-old children.

Afterwards, he kidnapped and imprisoned for about four hours for fear that B would report it, and then released it, and in the process, he sexually assaulted several times.

A was found to have served time for murder in 2005 and sexual violence in 2014, respectively. In response, the prosecution demanded the death penalty, saying, "I committed murder again even though I had a criminal record of the same kind."