"Hard to See as Human Act"... Death Penalty Requested for Yang Jeong-ryeol in 'Gimcheon Officetel Murder'

"Committed the crime for just 60 million won"
"Extremely low possibility of rehabilitation"

Defendant Yang Jeong-ryeol in the Gimcheon officetel murder case. Daegu District Prosecutors' Office Gimcheon Branch website

Yang Jeong-ryeol, who was arrested and indicted on charges of murdering a victim he had never met and taking out a loan using the victim's fingerprints, has been sentenced to death.

On the 4th, the prosecution requested the death penalty, the highest legal sentence, for Yang Jeong-ryeol, who is accused of robbery and murder, at the sentencing trial held at the Daegu District Court Gimcheon Branch Criminal Division 1 (Presiding Judge Han Dong-seok). Along with this, they also requested a 30-year electronic monitoring order.

Yang was indicted on charges of killing victim A (31) at an officetel in Gimcheon last November and then taking out a loan of 60 million won using the victim's fingerprints. At the time, he pretended to be a security guard and deceived the victim into opening the front door of his residence by saying he would check the card key.

Yang, who was on the run for a week, also impersonated the victim by sending text messages from A's mobile phone to the victim's parents saying "not at home." Investigations revealed that he thoroughly planned the murder, searching for tools and ordering necessary items online before the crime.

The prosecution stated, "Yang Jeong-ryeol's crime was committed to steal a mere 60 million won and is so shameless that it is hard to see it as an act by a human against another human," adding, "We judged that the possibility of rehabilitation is extremely low and therefore requested the death penalty." The sentencing for Yang will take place on the 15th of next month.