A man in his 20s who brutally killed stray cats and other wild animals and posted videos in an open chat room called 'Gore Specialist Room' was sentenced to prison.
According to the legal community on the 2nd, the Supreme Court's 3rd Division (Presiding Justice Lee Heung-gu) recently upheld the original sentence of 8 months imprisonment and a fine of 2 million won against Mr. A (29), who was prosecuted for violating the Animal Protection Act and other charges.
In January 2020, Mr. A is accused of shooting a stray cat with an arrow in Yeongdong, Chungbuk, filming the cat as it collapsed and looked at him, and then slaughtering it.
He is also accused of abusing cats by luring them into traps and confining them in his yard near his home in Taean, Chungnam, in the same year, and around September of that year, mutilating and killing a rabbit.
It was investigated that Mr. A posted photos and videos of the crimes four times from mid-September to the end of December 2020 in a KakaoTalk open chat room called 'Gore Specialist Room.'
Known as the 'Animal Version of the Nth Room,' the Gore Specialist Room was a KakaoTalk open chat room where people shared methods of capturing wild animals, cutting their bodies, and videos and photos of abuse. The police began an investigation and the room was shut down in January 2021.
The first trial court stated, "Mr. A posted messages in the chat room such as 'When you shoot an arrow, you can even hear the sound of the target being hit... chasing them as they run around is fun,' and shouted or laughed while watching the frightened cat," but considering his admission of guilt, he was sentenced to 4 months imprisonment with 2 years probation and a fine of 1 million won.
The prosecution, which demanded 3 years imprisonment, appealed, arguing that the sentence was too light.
The second trial court overturned the original ruling and sentenced him to actual imprisonment, stating, "There was no justifiable reason for causing pain and taking the lives of animals, and considering his disregard for life, it is difficult to see a low possibility of reoffending."
Mr. A then appealed the appellate court's decision, but the Supreme Court dismissed the appeal, finding no error in the lower court's judgment.
Meanwhile, the chat room administrator, who was also prosecuted alongside Mr. A, was fined 3 million won for posting videos depicting the cruel killing of animals (violation of the Animal Protection Act).
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