Court sentences man in his 40s to 20 years in prison for murder committed under delusion that "wife was trying to kill me"

"Mental impairment state but cruel crime method makes severe punishment inevitable"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Seok-jin] A man in his 40s who brutally murdered his wife, driven by the delusion that "my wife is trying to kill me," has been sentenced to a heavy prison term.

The court acknowledged that the man, who had suffered from a long-term mental illness, committed the crime in a state of diminished mental capacity with impaired decision-making ability, but judged that the method of the crime was cruel and the nature of the offense extremely serious, making severe punishment inevitable.

According to the legal community on the 27th, the Seoul Northern District Court Criminal Division 11 (Chief Judge Ma Seong-young) recently sentenced Jeong Mo (47), who was indicted on murder charges, to 20 years in prison, ordered treatment detention, and mandated the attachment of an electronic location tracking device for 15 years.

Jeong is accused of stabbing his wife A multiple times with a weapon at his mother’s residence in Seoul on August 18 of last year, resulting in her death.

Jeong, who had been receiving treatment since 2003 for delusional thoughts and hallucinations, was reportedly obsessed with the delusion that his wife was trying to kill him. Believing that the time for his wife to kill him was imminent, he decided to kill her first and committed the crime accordingly.

At the time of the crime, A was sitting on the living room sofa with her mother-in-law and daughter when she was suddenly attacked by Jeong. She fled to the apartment stairs, but Jeong chased her and killed her there.

The court stated, "Jeong committed this crime while in a state of diminished capacity due to mental illness, impairing his ability to distinguish things and make decisions," but added, "The method of the crime was unimaginably cruel, and the nature of the offense is extremely serious, making severe punishment unavoidable."

It also noted, "The daughter is expected to live with lifelong unbearable pain from the grief of losing her mother and the shock that the perpetrator is her own father," and "considering the victims’ family, including the victim’s sister, who petitioned for severe punishment against the defendant."