A man in his 50s who assaulted a taxi driver and fled with the taxi after drinking was sentenced to prison.
On the 27th, the Criminal Division 4 of Changwon District Court in Gyeongnam announced that it had sentenced Mr. A, a man in his 50s who was tried on charges including assaulting a driver, to 1 year and 6 months in prison.
According to the court, Mr. A is accused of assaulting Mr. B, a taxi driver in his 60s, while riding in a taxi on a road in Seongsan-gu, Changwon City in November 2021, and stealing the taxi to flee.
During this incident, Mr. A removed the black box and navigation system installed in the taxi, abandoned the car on a farm road in Buk-myeon, Uichang-gu, and fled.
At the time, Mr. A was intoxicated and demanded to drive without specifying a destination, then assaulted and verbally abused Mr. B, saying, "Are you driving as you please?"
He took advantage of the moment when Mr. B got out of the car to escape the assault, moved to the driver's seat, and drove off with the taxi.
Mr. B sustained injuries requiring two weeks of medical treatment due to the assault by Mr. A.
The court stated, "Assaulting a driver is very dangerous as it not only threatens the victim's safety but can also cause traffic accidents, harming an unspecified number of people. The defendant also destroyed evidence of the crime, which worsens the nature of the offense. Although not indicted, there was also a possibility of causing other accidents by driving under the influence."
It added, "However, considering that the victim expressed a desire not to press charges, the sentence was determined accordingly," explaining the reasoning behind the sentencing.
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