Kim Tae-hyeon (26), who was charged with murdering three mothers and daughters one after another in an apartment in Nowon-gu, Seoul, was also sentenced to life in prison.
Seoul High Court's Criminal Division 6-3 (Chief Judge Cho Eun-rae Kim Yong-ha) said today (19th) at the appeals trial of Mr. Kim, who was charged with murder and other charges, "The sentence in this case should be executed as an absolute life sentence without parole." Shim was sentenced to life in prison.
Kim is accused of murdering Mr. A, his sister, and his mother when Mr. A, whom he knew through an online game on March 23 last year, did not meet him.
Mr. Kim went to Mr. A's house, stabbed his defenseless brother, and killed his mother who followed.
After returning home from work, Mr. A also died at the hands of Mr. Kim.
In the first trial, Mr. Kim claimed that he had only planned to kill Mr. A, and that the crime against Mr. A's family was accidental.
On the other hand, the prosecution demanded the death penalty, the highest in the court, saying that the overall crime was planned.
The first trial judge ruled that Kim's crime was a planned crime, saying, "It does not appear that the murder of the family was accidental, and my brother and mother were killed as a means of committing the crime even though they had no relationship with the accused."
However, he was sentenced to life imprisonment, saying, "Considering the equity of the sentence with other serious cases, it cannot be concluded that there are special and objective circumstances to justify the death penalty."
(Photo = Yonhap News)