‘Stalking Murderer’ Kim Byung-chan Sentenced to 35 Years in First Trial

A woman in her 30s stabbed multiple times with a weapon and killed... Prosecution demands 'life imprisonment'

Suspect Kim Byung-chan, who was receiving personal protection due to stalking, is being transferred from Seoul Namdaemun Police Station to the prosecution last November after killing his ex-girlfriend./Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Kyung-jun] ‘Stalking murderer’ Kim Byung-chan (35) was sentenced to 35 years in prison in the first trial. The prosecution had previously requested the court to impose a life sentence.

The Seoul Central District Court Criminal Division 26 (Presiding Judge Jung Jin-ah) on the 16th sentenced Kim, who is accused of violating the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes (including retaliatory murder), to 35 years in prison and ordered him to wear an electronic monitoring device (electronic anklet) for 15 years.

Kim was brought to trial on charges of stabbing a woman in her 30s, Ms. A, multiple times with a weapon at an officetel in Jung-gu, Seoul, on November 19 last year. He is also accused of repeatedly trespassing, confining, and threatening Ms. A at her home from the second half of 2020 until November last year.

At the time of the murder, Ms. A had reported Kim four times for stalking crimes and was under police protection, and Kim Byung-chan was subject to a provisional court order including a restraining order.

During the trial, Kim repeatedly claimed that the crime was not premeditated but an ‘impulsive act.’ Kim’s defense attorney requested leniency, saying, "Please consider that the defendant admits the crime and is remorseful, has no prior convictions above probation or similar offenses, and that the murder was committed impulsively."

In his final statement, Kim said, "I committed the greatest crime that a person should never commit. I will take full responsibility for what I have done and endure any severe punishment." He added, "I will live with a continuously remorseful heart. I am sorry."

On the other hand, the bereaved family appealed to the court for a ‘death sentence.’ Ms. A’s father said, "(My eldest daughter) was stabbed with a knife and tried to call for help using a smartwatch provided by the police, but she received no assistance and died alone in pain." He sharply criticized, "The murderer cruelly took the precious and valuable life of my very kind daughter and even hired a public defender to claim it was an impulsive crime to reduce the sentence."

At the sentencing hearing held last month, the prosecution argued, "This crime was premeditated, the method was brutal, and after the crime, the suspect meticulously studied ways to escape to avoid the investigation net, so it is clearly a planned murder," and requested a life sentence and a 20-year electronic monitoring order.