Couple Sentenced to Heavy Prison Term for Inciting Wife to Kill Husband and Extorting Money

Husband sentenced to 7 years, wife to 5 years in prison
Demanded large sums even after receiving 100 million won and confining the victim

A man in his 40s who approached a woman contemplating divorce, engaged in an extramarital affair with her, then incited her to kill her husband and extorted money, along with a woman in a de facto relationship who conspired in the crime, were sentenced to heavy prison terms.

The Cheonan Branch Criminal Division 1 of Daejeon District Court (Presiding Judge Jeon Gyeong-ho) sentenced A (47) and B (50, female), who were detained and indicted on charges including attempted murder solicitation, to seven years and five years in prison respectively, according to a report by Yonhap News on the 6th.

Mr. A and his spouse were brought to trial on charges of inciting the crime by proposing methods of murder after learning that C (44, female), whom they knew, was contemplating divorce. After hearing their proposal, C decided to commit the crime and on the early morning of August 8, 2021, attempted to kill her husband by pushing him off the balcony of their 12th-floor apartment, but the attempt failed. Eventually, C and her husband divorced in 2023, but as civil and criminal lawsuits related to family and business issues continued, C’s husband took his own life in January of the following year.

When C’s extramarital affair with A was exposed, she gave A and his spouse 100 million won. However, A and his spouse continued to demand large sums of money from C. In April last year, when C tried to distance herself from A after her husband’s death, A confined and assaulted her, demanding 1.5 billion won.

C eventually reported A to the police. C was also indicted along with A and others on charges including attempted murder for trying to kill her husband and was sentenced to three years in prison with a five-year probation.

The court stated, "It is strongly presumed that A and B’s deep relationship, sharing even intimate details with C, was aimed at extracting financial gain from C and her spouse," and ruled, "Since C would inherit the estate upon her husband’s death, they had sufficient motive to incite murder, calculating that they could obtain greater benefits from C."