"Hallucinations Heard" 30s Stabbed Stranger Neighbor with Knife, Sentenced to Prison in First Trial

Court: "Sudden attack on victim's way to work... Mental shock is severe"

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo Byung-don] A man in his 30s, who was prosecuted for stabbing a neighbor he had never met multiple times with a weapon after hearing auditory hallucinations, was sentenced to prison in the first trial.

The Criminal Division 11 of the Seoul Southern District Court (Presiding Judge Sung Bo-gi) sentenced Mr. A (35), who was charged with attempted murder, to 3 years and 6 months in prison. In addition, treatment detention was ordered.

Earlier, on June 27 at 4:18 a.m., Mr. A was prosecuted on charges of wielding a weapon at Mr. B (67) after hearing auditory hallucinations saying, "Sprinkle Satan's blood in front of the elevator," while waiting in front of the elevator at his residence in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, and attacked when the elevator door opened.

Since September 2015, Mr. A had been diagnosed with a mental illness and was receiving treatment for schizophrenia and other conditions at a university hospital, but it was found that he had not taken his medication for a week at the time of the incident, which caused the symptoms of schizophrenia to manifest.

Fortunately, Mr. B resisted, and because the weapon broke during the struggle, the attack did not result in death.

The court stated, "It is judged that the defendant was in a psychotic state at the time of the crime, with at least a diminished capacity to distinguish objects or make decisions," but also noted, "The defendant attempted to erase traces after the crime, and there appears to be no organic brain damage. Despite schizophrenia not being fully cured, he seemed to have lived daily life without major difficulties."

Furthermore, the court said, "The psychiatric evaluation determined that at the time of the crime, the defendant was not at a level of loss of decision-making ability due to schizophrenia but was in a diminished mental and physical state," and added, "The reason the defendant did not proceed with further acts after inflicting facial injuries on the victim was because the knife broke and became unusable, preventing continuation of the crime."

Ultimately, the court ruled, "This crime posed a very serious threat to the victim's life," and "The victim was suddenly attacked while routinely taking the elevator to work, causing great fear and psychological trauma."