"Smoking in the Taxi"... 40s Passenger in 'Taxi Driver Assault' Given Suspended Sentence

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Daehyun] A male passenger in his 40s was sentenced to a suspended prison term for assaulting a taxi driver while driving after being refused a request to smoke inside the taxi.

According to the court on the 26th, the Seoul Central District Court Criminal Division 24 (Presiding Judge Jo Yongrae) recently sentenced A (40, male), who was indicted for assaulting a driver under the Act on Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes, to 1 year and 6 months in prison with a 2-year suspension.

Earlier, A was brought to trial on charges of assaulting taxi driver B while riding a taxi in Gwangjin-gu, Seoul, around midnight on October 24, 2020.

At the time, A wanted to smoke inside the taxi but was refused, and he is accused of slapping B’s cheek several times and pulling his hair while saying, "XX Xkkatne" (a Korean expletive). B was found to have sustained injuries requiring three weeks of medical treatment.

A had a prior record of multiple punishments for violent crimes such as assaulting drivers and damaging property. The trial was delayed for nearly a year as A did not appear in court after the first hearing.

The court stated, "Assaulting a driver of a moving vehicle is an act that itself can cause traffic accidents and poses a high risk of causing serious damage to the life, body, or property of third parties, so the nature of the crime is not light," and criticized A for having multiple prior convictions for violent crimes and for being unfaithful to the trial process.

However, the court added, "The defendant admitted to the crime and appears to show remorse," and noted favorable factors such as the victim’s injuries not being severe, a settlement being reached with the victim not wanting the defendant to be punished, no prior criminal punishments exceeding fines, and the defendant eventually attending the trial after being contacted by phone.

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