A Sri Lankan man who was accused as the perpetrator of the 'Daegu Female College Student Sexual Assault and Death Case' 25 years ago and was acquitted by the court is now set to face a final trial at the local Supreme Court through the efforts of domestic judicial authorities.
According to the Ministry of Justice on the 14th, the Sri Lankan national K (57) is scheduled for a final hearing at the Sri Lankan Supreme Court following an appeal by the local prosecution in December last year.
Lee Ji-hyung, head of the International Criminal Division of the Ministry of Justice, visited the Sri Lankan Attorney General's Office in December last year and delivered a letter from Vice Minister Ino-gong to Attorney General Sanjay Rajaratnam, requesting an appeal in K's case. Lee emphasized that although K was acquitted in the first and second trials, he must be re-evaluated by the Supreme Court to realize criminal justice. The Sri Lankan prosecution responded positively, and shortly after Lee and his team’s visit, an appeal was filed with the Supreme Court. The date for the verdict has not yet been set.
The incident occurred in the early morning of October 17, 1998. At that time, Jung, a first-year university student, was found dead on a highway in Daegu. Evidence of sexual assault was present, such as Jung’s underwear being found about 30 meters from the accident scene, but the police at the time concluded it was a traffic accident.
Later, in 2011, DNA from K, who was arrested on prostitution charges, was found to match the DNA on Jung’s underwear, bringing new developments to the case. The prosecution alleged that K, along with two Sri Lankan accomplices, took Jung under a highway culvert, sexually assaulted her, and robbed her, and indicted him in 2013, 15 years after the incident.
However, in 2017, the Supreme Court acknowledged the possibility of K’s sexual assault but ruled him not guilty due to the unreliability of the accomplices’ testimonies. Subsequently, K was forcibly deported to his home country.
The prosecution, considering how to punish K, confirmed that the statute of limitations was still valid under Sri Lankan law and sought cooperation with the local prosecution. As a result of these efforts, K was retried on sexual assault charges in October 2018, just four days before the expiration of the 20-year statute of limitations in Sri Lanka. However, due to the case occurring abroad 20 years ago, it was difficult for the local prosecution to maintain the charges. Ultimately, the Sri Lankan first and second trial courts acquitted K in December 2021 and November last year, citing insufficient evidence.
The Ministry of Justice plans to closely discuss the direction of maintaining the prosecution through video conferences and other means so that the ruling can be overturned at the local Supreme Court.
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