Over 3 Years of Starvation and Forcing Feces into Mouth
30 Years Prison Sentence in First Trial... "No Intent to Murder" Claimed
By the age of 8, Byeol-i passed away while suffering abuse from her biological mother in her 20s and stepfather / Photo by Korea Association for the Prevention of Child Abuse (KAPCA)
[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Daehyun] The prosecution has again requested a 30-year prison sentence in the second trial for the couple in their 20s accused of starving and abusing their 8-year-old daughter Byeori to death.
According to the legal community on the 12th, the prosecution asked the court on the 10th during the appeal trial of Byeori's biological mother Ms. A (28, female) and stepfather Mr. B (27, male) at the Seoul High Court Criminal Division 6-2 (Presiding Judge Jung Chongryeong) to impose the same sentence as the first trial for charges including murder and violation of the Child Welfare Act.
The couple argued, "It is true that we abused Byeori for a long time, but we never intended to kill her." Ms. A's side claimed that "the defendant gave the daughter a warm shower on the day of the incident," arguing that the testimony of their son Mr. C (9, Byeori's older brother), who said "Mom gave Byeori a cold shower," was mistaken. Mr. B said, "(After returning from work) I saw my daughter lying face down in the bathroom and only changed clothes to check her condition. Then I moved her to the room and performed artificial respiration and cardiopulmonary resuscitation for about 40 minutes."
Ms. A's lawyer stated, "The defendants deeply regret their responsibility, but the original sentence is too harsh," and made a final plea, "They have a son and a daughter Ms. D who was born recently. Please reduce the sentence so they can be released and raise their children." Mr. B's lawyer also appealed for leniency, saying, "They will practically spend the rest of their lives in prison, and please carefully consider all circumstances, including the fact that they provided prolonged rescue efforts for their daughter."
The court scheduled the second trial verdict for the 8th of next month.
Previously, the couple, who registered their marriage in 2017, were prosecuted on charges of repeatedly abusing Byeori a total of 35 times, including beating and starving her from January of the following year at their home in Incheon until March of this year, resulting in her death. On the day of the incident, Ms. A gave Byeori, who was bleeding from wounds, a cold shower, and Mr. B, despite seeing Byeori collapsed in the bathroom, played games on his phone in the living room, according to the prosecution's judgment.
It was found that Byeori was abused for reasons such as having accidents with urine and feces, secretly eating jokbal (pig's trotters) taken from the refrigerator in her room under the blanket, and simply discarding the bones. Mr. B made Byeori drink urine through a straw and even forced her to put panties soiled with feces into her mouth, and Ms. A was investigated to have neglected this despite knowing.
When the 119 emergency squad arrived after the couple's report, Byeori was already deceased and had bruises all over her body. According to the autopsy report, Byeori was severely underweight at 110 cm and 13 kg, and there was no food in her stomach or intestines.
The first trial sentenced them each to 30 years in prison as requested by the prosecution. The testimony of their biological older brother Mr. C, who lived with them and directly witnessed Byeori's death, played a decisive role. Immediately after the crime, Ms. A pressured the family to say things like "I only punished her about five times," but the family gave different statements to the investigation authorities. This testimony was crucial in the first trial's judgment.
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