First Trial of Kim Taehyun in 'Three Women Murder' Case: "I Did Not Plan to Kill My Family" Claims

Kim Taehyun Claims Accidental Crime in First Trial
Bereaved Family: "Not Human... Should Not Exist in This World"
Second Trial Scheduled for June 29

Suspect Kim Taehyun, accused of breaking into an apartment in Nowon-gu, Seoul, and killing three women of a family, is revealing his face on the 9th at Dobong Police Station in Seoul before being sent to the prosecution. Photo by Kang Jinhyung aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Song Seung-yoon] The trial proceedings for Kim Taehyun (25), who was arrested and indicted on charges of murdering three women in a mother-daughter trio at an apartment in Nowon-gu, Seoul, began on the 1st. At the first trial, Kim’s side admitted all the charges but argued that the killings of the victim’s family members were not premeditated, claiming it was a case of accidental murder.

The Criminal Division 13 of the Seoul Northern District Court (Presiding Judge Oh Kwon-cheol) held the first hearing for Kim, who was indicted on charges including murder, special trespassing, and violation of the Minor Offenses Act, on the morning of the same day.

Kim appeared in court for the first time since being transferred to the prosecution. Unlike the preparatory hearing, the defendant is required to attend the trial. Wearing a prison uniform, a face shield, and a mask, Kim entered the courtroom without showing much expression, slightly bowing his head and staring straight ahead.

At the trial, Kim’s defense argued that the murders of the younger sister and mother, excluding the victim A, were impulsive crimes. Kim’s lawyer stated, “The defendant admits to the charges and is remorseful,” but added, “There was no plan to kill the first and second victims at the stage of deciding to commit the crime.”

The defense lawyer further explained, “The defendant fell into the belief that the friends he played games with were criticizing him because the victim had spoken ill of him, which was the main motive for the murders,” and requested, “Please also consider that he did not flee after the crime and attempted suicide.”

The trial was attended by the victim’s bereaved family, their lawyers, and representatives from the Crime Victim Support Center. During the trial, the bereaved family was given the opportunity to speak and said, “It is absurd that this murderer killed three people and now writes a letter of remorse because he wants to live,” adding, “He is not even human and should not exist in this world. We hope the court will prove that such a person must not be allowed back into society.”

The bereaved family members seated in the gallery shed tears or sobbed while the prosecution read the charges. Throughout the trial, Kim Taehyun, who had been staring straight ahead, showed signs of agitation and heavy breathing when the bereaved family spoke.

The prosecution arrested and indicted Kim on April 27. Before the trial, Kim submitted letters of remorse to the court four times. Kim’s lawyer previously stated, “Although Kim expressed his intention to submit letters of remorse during visits, we did not specifically intervene in the content or frequency.”

Kim is accused of visiting an apartment in Junggye-dong, Nowon-gu, Seoul, on March 23 and sequentially murdering the three women in the mother-daughter trio. The crime was committed because the eldest daughter, A, whom Kim met through an online game last November, refused to meet and did not respond to his contact. Kim meticulously planned the crime by checking the victim’s work schedule in advance and preparing clothes to change into after the crime.

When Kim arrived at A’s residence, only A’s younger sister was home. Kim pretended to be delivering a package to get the door opened, then killed the younger sister, followed by the mother and A, who returned home one after another.

Before the crime, Kim threatened A to learn her phone’s unlock pattern, and after the crime, he turned on the computer in the house and accessed A’s social networking service (SNS), deleting conversations and friend lists related to himself.

Kim Taehyun’s second trial is scheduled for June 29.

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