Aunt Who Tortured and Killed 10-Year-Old Nephew Saying He Was 'Possessed by a Ghost' Sentenced to 30 Years in Prison

Law: "Murder, Absolutely Unforgivable Regardless of Reason... Strict Punishment Needed for Child Homicide"

[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Kyung-jun] A shaman who caused the death of her 10-year-old niece by water torture in a bathtub, claiming she was possessed by a ghost, has been sentenced to 30 years in prison.

According to the legal community on the 17th, the Supreme Court's 3rd Division (Presiding Justice Lee Heung-gu) upheld the original sentence of 30 years imprisonment for A (35, shaman), who was charged with murder and other offenses. The order to complete an 80-hour child abuse treatment program and a 10-year employment restriction at child-related institutions was also maintained.

B (34, traditional Korean musician), A’s husband who was also indicted, received a 12-year prison sentence in the second trial and did not appeal, so his sentence has already been finalized.

The two were prosecuted for assaulting their niece C (10) for three hours in their apartment last February, dragging her to the bathroom, restraining her hands and feet, and repeatedly forcing her head into a bathtub filled with water, causing her death by abuse.

Both the first and second trials recognized the two’s guilt for murder. The courts in both trials stated, "Murder is absolutely unacceptable regardless of the reason," and "Especially for crimes involving the killing of children who cannot protect themselves, harsher punishment is necessary." The Supreme Court also agreed with the lower courts’ rulings.

C’s biological mother, who was charged with aiding and abetting child abuse, abandonment, and neglect by directly purchasing and delivering the tools used in the crime to her sister A, was sentenced to three years in prison in the first trial last September.