A medical student surnamed Choi, 26, accused of murdering his 20s girlfriend A near Gangnam Station in Seoul, has been sentenced to 30 years in prison in an appeal trial. This represents a four-year increase from the original sentence.
On the 13th, the 7th Criminal Division of the Seoul High Court, led by Director General Lee Jae-gwon, Park Joo-young, and Song Mi-kyung, overturned the original sentence of 26 years for Choi's murder charges and imposed a 30-year sentence. Additionally, Choi was ordered to undergo five years of probation.
The court stated, "The defendant murdered the victim in a brutal manner under a meticulous plan," adding, "He did not receive forgiveness from the victim's family and made no effort for victim restitution." It further noted, "Rather, he showed an attitude of shifting the responsibility for his crime onto the victim's family," explaining that, considering these circumstances, the prosecution's claim that the first sentence was lenient has merit.
Earlier, Choi was arrested and indicted on charges of stabbing and killing his girlfriend A on May 6 while taking her to the rooftop of a building near Gangnam Station in Seoul. Investigations revealed that Choi prepared the weapon in advance after resolving to commit the crime due to conflicts over their breakup.
Choi is known to be a medical student who achieved a perfect score on the college entrance exam, but following the incident, his university expelled him with a disciplinary dismissal. Disciplinary dismissal is a severe punishment that disallows re-enrollment.