Man convicted in 2024 Gangnam Station murder gets 30 years upheld by top court

Choi, a medical student in his 20s accused of murdering his girlfriend with a knife, is transferred to prosecutors from Seocho Police Station in Seoul on May 14, 2024. Yonhap

A medical student who fatally stabbed his girlfriend on the rooftop of a building near Gangnam Station in Seoul last year has had his 30-year prison term upheld.

The top court’s first division, presided over by Justice Shin Suk-hee, confirmed the sentence for the defendant, surnamed Choi, convicted of murder. “Considering the defendant’s age, character, environment, his relationship with the victim and the motive, means and result of the crime, the 30-year term cannot be deemed excessive,” the court said.

Choi was indicted for killing his girlfriend on May 6 last year. The two, who had been middle school classmates, had secretly registered their marriage.

When her parents discovered it and filed a suit to annul the union, Choi lured her to the rooftop of a 15-story building near Gangnam Station and stabbed her multiple times.

The gruesome crime prompted speculation that Choi might be a psychopath. Prosecutors, however, concluded after clinical psychological tests that he was neither psychopathic nor mentally impaired.

Choi, who had scored a perfect mark on the national college entrance exam, was enrolled in medical school at the time of the crime.

A district court initially sentenced him to 26 years in prison, rejecting prosecutors’ request for electronic monitoring or probation, though it noted his impulsive and defensive tendencies. Both sides appealed. While Choi claimed the sentence was too heavy, prosecutors argued it was too light.

The appeals court accepted the prosecution’s stance, increasing the sentence to 30 years. “The motive and method of the crime clearly show an intent to kill, and the circumstances after the act raise doubts about whether the defendant has even minimal respect for human life,” the ruling said.

During the final appeal, Choi’s side sought leniency by citing his pledge to donate his organs. The victim’s family urged the court to impose the death penalty, also filing an additional complaint in June accusing Choi of mutilating the body, arguing that the murder charge alone had resulted in too light a punishment.

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.