A man in his 40s has been indicted for murdering his stepmother in her 70s after coveting her basic pension assets and secretly burying her body.
On the 12th, the Criminal Division 3 of the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors' Office (Chief Prosecutor Seo Won-ik) announced that they had arrested and indicted Bae (48, male) on charges of robbery-murder and corpse concealment.
According to the prosecution, Bae is accused of killing his stepmother Lee (75, female) around October 19 and burying her body the next day in a sandy area near Naeseongcheon Bridge in Yecheon-gun, Gyeongbuk, his hometown. Investigations revealed that Bae killed Lee when she tried to stop and hold him as he was leaving her home in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, carrying bankbooks containing her basic pension and his sister's disability pension. Bae withdrew a total of 1,650,000 won from these accounts, including 1,330,000 won on October 20 and 320,000 won on October 25.
Through supplementary investigations, the prosecution clarified the motive for the crime and changed the charge from murder to robbery-murder. Although Bae claimed the crime was impulsive, forensic analysis of his seized mobile phone, a will, and witness testimonies revealed that he had been continuously coveting Lee’s assets, disproving his claim. After losing his job in April, Bae had been squandering his money on betting on police and bicycle races and supporting internet broadcasts, accumulating debts. He had previously withdrawn money from Lee’s basic pension account and attempted to secure loans using her rental deposit as collateral. Additionally, Bae had drafted a will naming himself as the sole inheritor of all Lee’s assets. Under criminal law, murder can be punished by death, life imprisonment, or imprisonment for five years or more, but robbery-murder is punishable only by life imprisonment or death.
A prosecution official stated, "While providing support measures for the victim’s biological children and other bereaved family members, we will do our utmost to maintain the prosecution so that Bae receives a sentence commensurate with his crimes."
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