Suncheon murderer sentenced to life imprisonment in first trial

Park Dae-sung, who stabbed and killed a teenage girl he had encountered on the street in Suncheon, was sentenced to life imprisonment in the first trial.

On Thursday, the Gwangju District Court Suncheon Branch Criminal Division 1 sentenced Park to life imprisonment on charges of murder and preparation for murder. The court also ordered 20 years of electronic monitoring, a nighttime curfew from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m., and a prohibition on drinking alcohol with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.03 percent or higher.

"Park deprived the 18-year-old victim of the opportunity to pursue her dreams, killing her as she was preparing to take her first steps into society. The fear and helplessness she must have experienced cannot be expressed in words," the court stated. "He showed no remorse, responding to investigators' questions with laughter and jokes. He had prepared the weapon in advance and specifically targeted the victim, committing a premeditated crime."

Park was accused of stabbing the victim to death after following her for approximately 800 meters on the streets of Jorye-dong, Suncheon, South Jeolla Province, at around 12:44 a.m. on September 26 last year. He attempted further killings at nearby bars and karaoke establishments. "My heart is broken at the verdict of a life sentence," the victim's father expressed his grief. "The murderer should have been sentenced to death to prevent further victims." Prosecutors plan to review the judgment and decide whether to appeal.


Hyeong-Ju Lee peneye09@donga.com