The "100-Year Prisoner" Who Shook the Korean Community... Released After 30 Years and Ate Tofu

Andrew Seo Granted Early Release as Model Prisoner
Murdered Sister's Cohabitant in 1993 under Sister's Orders
"Perfect Behavior for 30 Years"...Prosecution Accepts Sentence Reduction

Andrew Suh (50), the perpetrator of a tragic murder case that occurred in Chicago, USA, in 1993, was granted early release after being recognized as a model prisoner. It has been about 30 years since he was sentenced to 100 years in prison.

On the 26th (local time), the Chicago Tribune reported this through an article titled “The protagonist of the notorious murder case committed by siblings 30 years ago has been released.”

On the 26th at around 9:45 a.m., Suh left the prison in Kiwanis, western Illinois, and expressed gratitude to the supporters and lawyers who came to greet him, eating tofu prepared by members of the Korean church in Chicago. The Tribune introduced the act of eating tofu as “a Korean custom meaning to wash away all the negative things that happened in the past.”

Last March, Suh was transferred to a low-security prison that provides vocational training programs for model prisoners with little time left on their sentences.

Andrew Seo eating tofu handed by a Korean supporter after being released from a prison in Illinois, USA
Photo by Candice Chambliss Attorney

The Tribune reported, “According to the new Illinois state law enacted in January, Suh was credited with about 4,000 days of prison time for his achievements such as the credit he earned as a model prisoner, labor hours in prison, and completion of rehabilitation programs,” adding, “The Cook County prosecutor’s office accepted the request for sentence reduction on the remaining term.”

It continued, “Suh’s prison life score over 30 years is close to perfect,” noting, “He completed various rehabilitation and education programs including obtaining a certified optician license, volunteered in the hospice ward inside the prison, co-authored the inmate newsletter, helped disabled inmates, and actively participated in mentoring programs for at-risk youth.”

Suh, whose Korean name is Seo Seung-mo, was born in Seoul to a father who was a former military officer and a mother who was a pharmacist. He immigrated to Chicago in 1976 at the age of two. However, nine years after immigrating, in 1985, his father passed away from cancer, and his mother was murdered in 1987 during a robbery while running a laundry business.

Suh endured a difficult adolescence relying on his older sister Katherine, who is five years his senior. Despite hardships, he served as student council president at the prestigious private high school Loyola Academy and also played as a football player.

However, Suh, who later entered college as a scholarship student, was arrested on September 25, 1993, for shooting and killing Robert Oduvein (then 31), his sister’s live-in boyfriend, in the garage of a Chicago home, shocking the community.

At the time, the prosecution announced that the siblings, living alone without parents, committed the crime aiming for a $250,000 life insurance payout (about 330 million KRW) under Oduvein’s name.

However, it was later revealed that 19-year-old Suh committed the murder under the instigation of his sister Katherine. Katherine was known to have ordered the murder, claiming “Oduvein killed our mother, squandered the inheritance on gambling debts, and abused me.”

A scene from the 2010 documentary "The House of Suh," which deals with the Andrew Suh case [Image source=IMDb]

Suh was sentenced to 100 years in prison in 1995, which was later reduced to 80 years on appeal. Suh’s sister Katherine (54) was sentenced to life imprisonment without parole and is currently serving her sentence.

In 2010, Suh confessed in the documentary “The House of Suh” that he believed he was “doing the right thing for the family.” He believed that killing Oduvein was the way to avenge his mother and protect his sister.

However, in a 2017 interview with the Tribune, he revealed that he became convinced “that my sister killed our mother aiming for an $800,000 inheritance (about 1 billion KRW).” The case of Suh’s mother’s death remains unsolved to this day.

Candice Chambliss, legal counsel for the nonprofit organization Illinois Prison Project (IPP), which has been defending Suh, said, “He was very happy to be notified on the 24th of the possibility of early release,” adding, “He is in good health and has gained the opportunity to live the rest of his life beautifully and freely through early release.”