Stepfather Sentenced to 25 Years for 11 Years of Grooming Sexual Abuse of Stepdaughter

Biological Mother Involved in Crime Sentenced to 12 Years
Court: "Caused Irreparable Harm for Life"

A stepfather who was prosecuted for sexually assaulting his stepdaughter 13 times over 11 years was sentenced to 25 years in prison. / Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Lim Ju-hyung] A stepfather in his 50s and the biological mother were sentenced to heavy prison terms for sexually assaulting and abusing their stepdaughter over 11 years.

On the 25th, the Criminal Division 4 of Changwon District Court (Presiding Judge Lee Heon) announced that A (52), who was tried on a total of 11 charges including special quasi-rape and rape of a minor under 13, was sentenced to 25 years in prison and ordered to wear an electronic tracking device for 20 years.

Additionally, the court sentenced the victim’s biological mother B (53), who was tried on five charges including special quasi-sexual assault, to 12 years in prison on the same day.

The court stated, "The actual damage is believed to be greater than the facts of the crime stated in the judgment, and it is difficult to even imagine the mental and physical suffering the victim endured," emphasizing, "At the beginning of the investigation, the victim did not even realize that the acts of her parents were crimes."

It continued, "The stepfather used his stepdaughter as a tool to satisfy his sexual demands for 11 years, and the biological mother even facilitated her husband’s crimes," adding, "Considering that these inhumane crimes occurred within the home, which should be the safest place, that they violated human dignity and family values that support our society, and that the daughter suffered lifelong irreparable damage, a heavy sentence is inevitable."

A committed sexual assault against the victim C, who was only 10 years old at the time, at his home in Gimhae, Gyeongnam, in 2006, saying, "A father can normally touch his daughter’s body." In 2007, he also raped C in the presence of B.

Investigations revealed that A sexually assaulted C 13 times until she became an adult in 2016. The biological mother B was confirmed to have not only failed to stop A’s crimes but also participated in them.

Psychologically submissive, C did not recognize that the acts of her stepfather and biological mother were crimes until she became an adult. Later, with the help of acquaintances who noticed the situation, she reported it to the police and was able to escape from the home.

The parents on trial denied their charges, claiming there was no evidence other than their daughter’s testimony and that it would have been difficult to commit the crimes without other family members noticing due to the house’s structure. In particular, A claimed that "after the daughter became an adult, they had consensual sexual relations 6 to 7 times, but there was no forced rape."

However, the court focused on the fact that C had lived in an orphanage during her childhood and believed that her fear of being abandoned by her family if she disobeyed her parents led her to psychologically submit to them.

Moreover, acquaintances of C testified that they had seen bruises on her body or witnessed or heard A verbally abusing and assaulting her.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.