Korean man gets 2-year jail term for confining, assaulting Uzbek national

Incheon District Court / Korea Times file

By Jun Ji-hye

A Korean man in his 50s was sentenced to two years in prison for confining and assaulting a 23-year-old man from Uzbekistan, after drugging him with a sedative and handcuffing him.

The Incheon District Court handed down the prison sentence to the Korean national, Monday, on charges of injury and confinement.

According to the court, the victim visited the perpetrator's home after seeing a job ad from an employment agency looking to hire a guide to carry baggage for tourists. The ad also said that the employer would provide accommodation and meals for 10 days.

The victim went to the perpetrator's apartment in Incheon on Jan. 20 and was given a drink spiked with Zolpidem, a sedative often used for the treatment of insomnia. After the victim lost consciousness, the perpetrator handcuffed him.

The perpetrator then confined the victim and physically attacked him with a blunt instrument for eight hours. As a result, the victim suffered injuries to his head, jaw and right hand.

After being assaulted, the victim barely managed to escape from the apartment and reported the incident to the police.

The perpetrator lost consciousness after attempting suicide, but was transferred to a nearby hospital. His motive for committing the crime has not been disclosed.

The perpetrator had earlier received a one-year jail term on charges of sexual violence in November 2018.

“He committed this crime on top of his previous criminal record,” Judge Yoon Seong-heon said in his ruling. “A harsh punishment is unavoidable as the victim suffered serious injury, mental anguish and fear.”