60-Year-Old Man Sentenced to 15 Years for Killing Neighbor Over "Acting Cocky" Confirmed

1st Trial: 10 Years Imprisonment → 2nd Trial "Sentence Too Light" 15 Years Imprisonment Sentenced

A man in his 60s who killed a neighboring resident for reasons such as speaking informally to him while drinking was sentenced to 15 years in prison.

The Supreme Court's 2nd Division (Presiding Justice Min Yusook) announced on the 4th that it upheld the original sentence of 15 years in prison in the appeal trial of Mr. A, who was prosecuted on charges including murder.

Mr. A was prosecuted on charges of stabbing and killing his neighbor Mr. B six times with a weapon in front of a convenience store in Jeju City last July while drinking together. It was investigated that Mr. A thought Mr. B was acting arrogantly by scolding him and speaking to him carelessly, so he brought a fishing knife from his house about 90 meters away and stabbed the victim. After killing Mr. B, Mr. A fled but surrendered to the police a few hours later.

Mr. A is a repeat offender with 31 convictions, including 24 for violence, and had served five years in prison for attempted murder before committing murder three years after his release.

The first trial court sentenced him to 10 years in prison, stating, "Human life is a precious and absolute value that cannot be exchanged for anything, and murder that infringes upon it is a serious crime whose damage cannot be restored by any means."

On the other hand, the second trial court considered the first trial's sentence too light. The second trial court sentenced him to 15 years in prison, stating, "The act is highly blameworthy socially and morally, the physical and mental pain the victim must have felt is difficult to express in words, and there was no forgiveness or settlement from the bereaved family."

The Supreme Court also upheld the second trial's judgment, stating, "Considering the motive, means and result of the crime, and the circumstances after the crime, the sentence of 15 years in prison cannot be said to be excessively unfair."

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