The director, who caused the death of a 5-year-old child by abusing them, such as placing the child upside down on a mat in the taekwondo gym, has been sentenced to a heavy prison term.
The Uijeongbu District Court's 11th Criminal Division (Director General Oh Chang-seop) sentenced a man in his 30s, referred to as A, to 30 years in prison on charges of child abuse and murder on the 10th. The court also ordered the completion of a 40-hour child abuse treatment program and a 10-year employment restriction at child and youth-related institutions.
The court noted, 'The defendant was aware that there was a risk or possibility of death if the abused child was neglected after the incident, yet left the child unattended for about 27 minutes.' They added, 'The defendant also abused about 20 other child victims for a considerable period and displayed an attitude that dismissed this as just a game, making it difficult to gauge the truth of the matter.'
'The defendant has been making excuses, such as shifting responsibility to other instructors, and even attempted to delete closed-circuit (CC) TV footage alone after the victim lost consciousness, forcing an instructor to provide false testimony and attempting to destroy evidence,' the court stated. 'While the defendant claims there was no intention to cause death, any ordinary person could have recognized the risk of death.'
The court explained the reason for sentencing, saying, 'The victim's family is in anguish, feeling an unbearable guilt for not protecting the child, and they have been urging for severe punishment against the defendant at every court appearance.' They added, 'The defendant's actions have made parents sending their children to taekwondo studios feel uneasy.'
Earlier, the prosecution sought life imprisonment for A during the final hearing on the 20th of last month.
The attorney for A argued, 'The CCTV footage could be interpreted differently from the charges, and there remain questions about whether there was intent to abuse.'
A stated during the closing remarks, 'I will not make excuses for my actions. I am sorry,' but he could not avoid a heavy sentence that day.
The mother of the victim, who attended the sentencing hearing, collapsed in tears immediately after the ruling and was escorted out by court officials.
The victim's mother told reporters, 'Our country's child law seems too weak, as this appears to be the maximum. Frankly, I believe he should receive a punishment worse than the death penalty, and I cannot accept this,' adding, 'Whether in the second or third trial, I will see this through to the end.'
A was arrested and charged with causing the death of a 5-year-old child, referred to as B, by placing him upside down between mats that were propped up at a taekwondo studio in Deokgye-dong, Yangju, on July 12 last year.
It was also revealed that A attempted to conceal the crime by deleting the CCTV footage and did not perform immediate cardiopulmonary resuscitation after B was found in a comatose state.
Investigations by authorities found that A subjected a total of 26 students, including B, to physical and emotional abuse 124 times, such as placing them upside down on mats or pinching and hitting their cheeks.