Prosecutors Demand Life Sentence for Choi Seong-woo Who Killed Neighbor by Beating in Smoking Area

The prosecution has demanded a life sentence for Choi Seong-woo (28), who killed a neighbor in his 70s by beating him at an apartment smoking area.

Suspect Choi Seong-woo in the murder of a neighbor in an apartment in Jungnang-gu. Provided by Seoul Northern District Prosecutors' Office.

According to the Seoul Northern District Prosecutors' Office on the 14th, at a trial held the previous day at the 13th Criminal Division of the Seoul Northern District Court (Chief Judge Lee Tae-woong), the prosecution requested a life sentence for Choi Seong-woo, who was indicted on charges of murder. They also asked the court to impose 10 years of electronic location tracking and probation.

Choi Seong-woo is accused of indiscriminately assaulting and killing the victim, a neighbor, by punching his face and head dozens of times and repeatedly striking his head with a landscaping stone at an apartment smoking area in Jungnang-gu, Seoul, around 7:50 p.m. on August 20 last year.

It was confirmed that Choi Seong-woo was delusional, believing that the victim was threatening him and his biological mother. After the assault, the victim lost consciousness and collapsed, was transported to the hospital, but died within an hour.

In September last year, the prosecution disclosed Choi Seong-woo's personal information, stating that "the method of the crime was brutal and caused serious harm."