[Asia Economy Reporter Baek Kyunghwan] A resident who habitually assaulted an apartment security guard and drove him to an extreme choice was sentenced to imprisonment again in the appellate court. The court criticized the perpetrator for not sincerely reflecting on his actions and consistently blaming others.
Recently, the Seoul High Court sentenced resident Sim Mo, who was charged with repeatedly assaulting and verbally abusing the late apartment security guard Choi Hee-seok, to five years in prison. At the appellate trial's closing hearing last month, the prosecution demanded nine years in prison, the same as the original sentence.
Sim was arrested and indicted on charges of assaulting and threatening Choi, who was the security guard at an apartment in Gangbuk, Seoul, where Sim resided, multiple times between April and May last year. In particular, Sim assaulted Choi for pushing his private car by hand and later locked Choi in the security guard's restroom, beating and threatening him while urging him to resign.
The voice will file left by Choi before his death confirmed that Sim meticulously planned the crime by checking whether there was a closed-circuit television (CCTV) before assaulting Choi. Sim also claimed mutual assault and demanded compensation for medical expenses. However, Choi, distressed by Sim's harassment, took his own life on May 10 last year at his home. Choi left a will stating that he had been assaulted and threatened by Sim.
The first trial court stated, "The victim seemed unable to resign due to persistent harassment while trying to make a living," and "Considering the investigation process and courtroom attitude, Sim is not sincerely reflecting."
The appellate court also found no problem with the first trial's judgment, upheld the five-year prison sentence, and criticized Sim's attitude. Despite the very serious nature of the crime, Sim only blames others, claiming that the media exaggerated the deceased's false testimony or that the prosecution and court failed to discern the truth.
In particular, the court pointed out that although Sim submitted a letter of apology, it lacked sincerity, and more than a year after the incident, he has not received forgiveness from the bereaved family. Furthermore, although Sim said he would sell the apartment to reach a settlement with the bereaved family, the court could not verify this claim and did not accept the request to postpone the sentencing date, stating there was no guarantee of a settlement.
Meanwhile, in his final statement, Sim said, "Although the incident on May 3 last year is not true, it was indiscriminately and defenselessly leaked to the media and online," showing an attitude of "Please do not try to cover up the truth of the incident and my appeal."
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