Supreme Court Confirms 10-Year Prison Sentence for Man in His 30s Who Killed Cohabiting Woman After 'Breakup Notice'

A man in his 30s who strangled his cohabiting girlfriend to death after failing to win back her heart following a breakup notice was sentenced to 10 years in prison.

The sentencing took into account that the crime was committed impulsively, that a settlement was reached with the victim's family, and that the family did not wish for punishment.

Supreme Court, Seocho-dong, Seoul.

According to the legal community on the 14th, the Supreme Court's 2nd Division (Presiding Justice Kim Sang-hwan) upheld the original sentence of 10 years in prison for Kim (39), who was charged with murder.

The court stated, "Considering various factors related to sentencing conditions shown in the records, such as the defendant's age, character, environment, relationship with the victim, motive, means and result of the crime, and circumstances after the crime, even taking into account the reasons claimed in the appeal, it cannot be said that the lower court's decision to uphold the first trial's sentence of 10 years imprisonment for the defendant is seriously unjust," thus rejecting Kim's appeal.

Kim began dating the victim, Ms. A (34, female), in January 2020, and from April of the same year, they started living together at Ms. A's home in Danwon-gu, Ansan-si, Gyeonggi-do. A year later, they moved residence and lived together with Ms. A and her two children.

However, in April 2023, problems arose between the two when Ms. A started dating Mr. B, who visited the hospital where she worked as a patient.

On May 22, 2023, near their home convenience store, Kim learned from Ms. A that she was dating Mr. B, and on May 26, he received a KakaoTalk message from Ms. A saying, "Let's just end this... If it's hard right now, let's take some time and then do it." Afterward, Kim continued exchanging KakaoTalk messages with Ms. A in an attempt to win her back.

On the evening of May 27, 2023, Kim saw through a camera installed in the living room that Ms. A took a shower, put on makeup, and went out. He thought she was going to meet Mr. B. That night, after confirming Ms. A had returned home, Kim entered the house around 3 a.m. the next day and lay on top of Ms. A, who was lying down with her two children, hugging her to end their relationship.

Kim tried to persuade Ms. A, saying, "Come back. Why can't you pull yourself together? What are you doing over a short relationship? Why are you shaken because of a man? Pull yourself together," but when Ms. A shook her head and said, "I'm sorry. I'm sorry to you, oppa," Kim, thinking he could no longer win back her heart, became angry and strangled Ms. A to death with both hands.

In the first trial, the prosecution sought a 30-year prison sentence for Kim, but the court sentenced him to 10 years.

The court considered the following favorable factors in sentencing: ▲ Kim confessed to the crime from the early stages of the investigation ▲ he was a first-time offender with no other criminal record ▲ he paid 50 million won as a settlement to the victim's family and reached an agreement ▲ the victim's family did not want Kim to be punished ▲ the crime appeared to have been committed impulsively without prior planning ▲ Kim performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation belatedly in an attempt to save Ms. A after the crime.

Both the prosecution and Kim appealed on the grounds of unfair sentencing, but the appellate court's judgment was the same.

Kim filed a final appeal, but the Supreme Court also found no problem with this judgment.