"Playing Around Accident"... Also Pretending to Be a Witness
Prosecutors Apply Murder Charges
Three individuals in their teens and twenties were prosecuted for deliberately drowning a person with an intellectual disability in the sea under the pretext of a rock-paper-scissors bet. They tried to avoid punishment by pretending to be witnesses, but were caught through additional analysis of CCTV footage by the prosecution.
Three individuals were brought to trial for deliberately drowning a person with an intellectual disability in the sea under the pretext of a rock-paper-scissors bet. The photo is not directly related. [Image source=Getty Images]
On the 23rd, Yonhap News reported that the Mokpo branch of the Gwangju District Prosecutors' Office arrested and indicted A (20) and high school student B (16) on murder charges, while middle school student C (14), who was present at the scene, was indicted without detention on charges of aiding and abetting murder. They are accused of drowning and killing D (18), who has a severe intellectual disability, at the floating pier of the North Port in Mokpo, Jeollanam-do, on February 1.
They lured the victim, whom they knew, to the pier under the pretext of fishing together, and played rock-paper-scissors with the condition that the loser would jump into the sea. They exploited the fact that D, who has an intellectual disability, always played rock-paper-scissors with the same pattern, allowing them to easily win the bet.
A and B forced the losing victim to enter the water. Although the victim, who could not swim, was terrified and refused, they forcibly pushed him into the sea, which was 4 meters deep. C filmed the scene on her cellphone and is reported to have aided the crime by blocking the victim’s attempt to escape.
The victim, who fell into the sea, was rescued by the coast guard patrolling the area and was transported to the hospital in an unconscious state but eventually died.
When the investigation began, B and C took advantage of the absence of witnesses and pretended to be eyewitnesses. They falsely testified that the accident happened due to A’s mistake during a prank.
Initially, the coast guard believed this and sent A to prosecution on charges of gross negligence causing death, but after the prosecution took over the case and conducted additional analysis of closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage, they confirmed that the suspects pushed D multiple times, revealing the full details of the crime. Forensic analysis of cellphones also uncovered that B and C conspired in advance to give false testimony.
The prosecution changed the charge against A from gross negligence causing death to murder and additionally indicted B and C, who were not initially charged.
A prosecution official stated, "Considering the severity of the harm and the bereaved family's request for strict punishment, we have indicted the juvenile offenders with detention," and added, "We will do our best to ensure that a strict sentence commensurate with the crime is imposed."
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