Prosecutors Request 20-Year Electronic Monitoring for Lee Eun-hae and Jo Hyun-soo in 'Valley Murder' Case

Defendants Lee Eun-hae and Jo Hyun-soo in the 'Valley Murder' Case
Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyesook] The prosecution has requested the court to order electronic monitoring devices to be attached to defendants Lee Eunhae (31) and Jo Hyunsoo (30) in the "Valley Murder" case.

At the 15th trial held on the 22nd at the Incheon District Court Criminal Division 15 (Presiding Judge Lee Gyuhun), the prosecution requested that Lee and Jo, who were indicted on charges including murder and attempted murder, be ordered to wear electronic monitoring devices (electronic anklets) for 20 years and be placed under probation for 5 years.

The prosecution stated, "The defendants have persistently denied the circumstances of murder and attempted murder, and regarded the victim as a tool for financial gain," adding, "They committed the crime with the purpose of receiving insurance money and ultimately killed the victim."

They continued, "In the recidivism risk assessment (KORAS-G), a score of 12 or higher is considered high; Lee Eunhae scored 15 points, and Jo Hyunsoo was assessed at 10 points," arguing, "Therefore, an order to attach electronic monitoring devices is deemed necessary."

Meanwhile, earlier, the defense attorneys for Lee and others filed a motion to suspend the trial proceedings, citing the need for preparation time after the prosecution amended the indictment to add charges of 'murder by omission' alongside 'murder by commission,' but the court dismissed the motion.

Accordingly, the witness examination scheduled for the 22nd and the closing arguments on the 23rd will proceed as planned.

Lee was arrested and indicted on charges including the murder of her husband A (aged 39 at the time of death) on June 30, 2019, at 8:24 p.m. in Yongsogye Valley, Gapyeong-gun, Gyeonggi Province, together with her lover Jo.

The prosecution concluded that Lee and others caused the death by forcing A, who could not swim, to jump from a 4-meter-high rock into a 3-meter-deep valley pool without any rescue equipment. They determined that the crime was planned with the aim of claiming 800 million won in life insurance under A’s name.

Lee and others are also accused of attempting to kill A in February and May of the same year by feeding him food mixed with pufferfish poison and by making him fall into fishing pond water.

They went into hiding before the prosecution’s second investigation on December 14 last year and were apprehended by police on the 16th of last month at an officetel near Samsong Station in Goyang-si, Gyeonggi Province, after four months on the run.

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