"Rent Me a Workspace"...Tattoo Artist Sentenced to Prison for Stabbing Disciple Who Refused Request

4 Years Imprisonment and 3 Years Probation
Crime Committed Out of Grudge Against Student

A tattoo artist who stabbed his apprentice with a weapon for refusing to lend a workspace was sentenced to prison.

The Criminal Division 12 of the Seoul Eastern District Court (Chief Judge Lee Jeong-hyung) announced on the 30th that it sentenced Mr. A (48), who is accused of attempted murder, to four years in prison and ordered three years of probation.

Mr. A is accused of stabbing the victim, Mr. B, with a weapon at a tattoo studio in Seongdong-gu, Seoul, last June. They had a master-apprentice relationship, and it was confirmed that Mr. B had learned tattooing skills from Mr. A for six months in the past.

From 2022 until last June, Mr. A lost a large sum of money gambling at a hold'em pub operated by Mr. B in Dongdaemun-gu, Seoul. Afterwards, on June 19, when the tattoo studio where Mr. A worked was shut down due to a police crackdown, he visited Mr. B to ask to rent a tattoo workspace, offering to pay 300,000 won per month.

Mr. B initially agreed to Mr. A's request but changed his mind and expressed refusal via text message the next day. Rejected, Mr. A took a weapon he had prepared in advance and headed to Mr. B's tattoo studio on the same day. Just before the crime, Mr. A called the police saying, "I think I will kill someone," then entered the tattoo studio and stabbed Mr. B with the weapon. Mr. B survived thanks to the intervention of employees who rushed in after hearing his screams.

The court stated the sentencing reasons, saying, "Considering the method of the crime and the injury location on the victim, the nature of the crime is by no means good," and "The defendant has not made any restitution to the victim and has not received forgiveness from the victim."