Court Reduces Sentence for Serial Killer Who Asked for "Death Penalty," Saying "I Reflect"

Court: "Robbery planning acknowledged... Murder planning cannot be concluded"

Kwon Jae-chan (54), who was sentenced to death in the first trial for killing a woman he knew and causing the deaths of accomplices, received a reduced sentence in the second trial.

On the 23rd, the Seoul High Court Criminal Division 7 (Presiding Judges Lee Gyu-hong, Lee Ji-young, Kim Seul-gi) overturned the first trial's death sentence and sentenced Kwon Jae-chan, who was detained and indicted on charges including robbery-murder and corpse abandonment, to life imprisonment.

Photo by Yonhap [Image source=Yonhap News]

The court stated the reason for the reduced sentence, saying, "The death penalty is an extremely exceptional punishment that permanently deprives human life itself and should only be imposed when there are clearly special circumstances. While it is acknowledged that the defendant planned the robbery, it is difficult to definitively conclude that he planned the murder as well."

In December 2021, Kwon Jae-chan gave a beverage laced with sleeping pills to a woman in her 50s whom he knew at an underground parking lot of a building in Michuhol-gu, Incheon, then assaulted and killed her. After abandoning the body, he stole valuables worth approximately 11,322,000 KRW. Kwon also lured a colleague who had helped him dispose of the body to a mountain in Eulwang-ri, Jung-gu, Incheon, saying, "The body is decomposing and the crime might be exposed, so let's go bury it," and killed him as well.

Previously, in 2003, Kwon killed a pawnshop owner who operated alone in Michuhol-gu, stole checks and 320,000 KRW in cash, and fled to Japan by stowing away but was caught and sentenced to life imprisonment in the first trial. However, his sentence was reduced to 15 years in the appeal trial, and he was released in 2018.

The court sentenced him to death in the first trial in June last year, stating, "There is no possibility of rehabilitation or restoration of humanity." The prosecution requested the death penalty in the second trial as well.

In his final statement, Kwon said, "I have committed a grave sin against the victim and her family and accept the death penalty," and asked for the appeal to be dismissed.

Kwon's lawyer appealed, saying, "Kwon Jae-chan has attempted extreme measures more than three times while in detention and is struggling with guilt, seeing the victim every time he closes his eyes. We ask for some leniency."

The second trial court said, "This attitude of Kwon Jae-chan itself can be seen as remorse," and added, "The death penalty should only be imposed in extremely exceptional cases."

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