A man in his 20s who brutally killed animals and shared them in a 'gore room'... "Psychiatric evaluation to be conducted"

At the First Appeal Trial, the Court Requested... Defendant Also Agreed
First Trial Resulted in Suspended Prison Sentence and 1 Million Won Fine

The court has decided to conduct a psychiatric evaluation on a man in his 20s who brutally killed stray cats and rabbits using weapons and then posted photos and videos in an open chat room.

According to a Yonhap News report on the 2nd, the 1st Criminal Appeals Division of Daejeon District Court (Presiding Judge Na Kyung-sun) held the first appeal trial for A (29), who was indicted on charges including violation of the Animal Protection Act. The court said, "There are psychological assessment tools developed for sex offenders, but such tools do not yet exist for this type of crime," and requested the prosecution to review whether the risk of recidivism can be assessed using psychological tests. In response, the prosecution stated that in addition to basic sentencing materials such as mobile phone forensics, they would seek expert opinions. Since A also agreed to undergo psychological testing, the next trial scheduled for August 25 will include a sentencing investigation considering A’s mental condition.

A is accused of shooting a stray cat with an arrow in Yeongdong-gun, Chungbuk, in January 2020, filming the cat looking at him while collapsed, and then killing it in a cruel manner. He is also accused of confining and abusing cats in his yard near his home in Taean-gun, Chungnam, and killing a rabbit with a weapon around September of the same year.

A scene from a video of stray cat abuse shared in the KakaoTalk open chat room 'Goeo Jeonmunbang' [Image source=Yonhap News]

Subsequently, between September and December 2020, A posted photos and videos of his animal abuse scenes four times in a KakaoTalk open chat room known as a 'gore specialty room.' During the first trial, A’s side claimed that they had a hunting permit, which justified killing wild animals, but the court did not accept this argument.

The first trial court considered as evidence that A posted messages in the chat room such as "When you shoot a bow, you can hear the sound of the arrow hitting the target... chasing the running animal is fun," and that he shouted or laughed while watching terrified cats. Nevertheless, the court sentenced him to four months in prison with a two-year probation and a fine of 1 million won, reasoning that A showed efforts such as engaging in animal protection activities after the crime and was a first-time offender, so he deserved a chance. The prosecution appealed, arguing that the original sentence was too lenient and unfair.

Animal Rights Activist Appeals for Imprisonment

Meanwhile, during the appeal trial, a representative from an animal protection organization who reported A appeared as a witness and expressed sentencing opinions. Yoon Seong-mo, an activist from Animal Rights Action Kara, who attended the trial, said, "Even after this case, cruel crimes against animals continue in online gore rooms, and since most participants are minors, there is concern about copycat crimes." He added, "The defendant was given a reduced sentence because he claimed he would engage in animal protection activities, but volunteering at an animal protection organization is like a person who committed child abuse saying they will work at a child welfare facility," and appealed, "Please impose a prison sentence by seriously considering not only the violence against animals but also the harm and danger to people."

The gore specialty room where A was active is a KakaoTalk open chat room where methods of capturing and abusing wild animals and related videos and photos were shared. At that time, about 80 people participated in the room, most of whom were minors. Later, some chat contents spread on SNS and other platforms, and the chat room was called the 'animal version of the nth room,' causing public outrage. In January 2021, animal rights organizations such as Animal Freedom Union and Animal Rights Action Kara reported the users of this chat room to the police. The chat room administrator, who was indicted along with A, was fined 3 million won for violating the Animal Protection Act, and the fine was confirmed.