[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Daehyun] The young men and their families who were wrongfully imprisoned in the so-called 'Samnye Nara Supermarket Robbery and Homicide Case' won a partial victory in the damages lawsuit against the state and the prosecutor who mishandled the investigation at the time, even in the appellate court.
On the 3rd, the 13th Civil Division of the Seoul High Court (Presiding Judges Kang Mingu, Jeong Mungyeong, Jang Jeonghwan) ruled in favor of the plaintiffs in part in the damages lawsuit filed by Lim, Choi, and Kang?three individuals who were wrongfully convicted as the real culprits, served their sentences, were released, and later acquitted in a retrial?against the state and the prosecutor who conducted the investigation at the time.
On this day, the second-instance court increased the compensation amount for Mr. Kang by about 36 million KRW compared to the first trial. All appeals from the prosecution were dismissed.
Previously, Lim (then 20), Choi (19), and Kang (19) were prosecuted and sentenced to 3 to 6 years in prison for breaking into 'Nara Supermarket' in Samnye-eup, Wanju-gun, Jeonbuk Province on February 6, 1999, taping the mouth of a 76-year-old grandmother named Yoo, who later died. After completing their sentences, they filed for a retrial in March 2015, claiming they had falsely confessed due to police coercion, and were acquitted in 2016.
The first trial ordered the state to pay approximately 477 million KRW to victim Lim, 327 million KRW to Choi, and 371 million KRW to Kang, and to pay between 10 million and 130 million KRW to each of the victims' families. Part of the total compensation was also to be borne by the investigating prosecutor at the time. Kang, one of the three, and the investigating prosecutor appealed the first trial's ruling.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
