How many people are currently on death row in Korea, and what is their average age?

There are 52 death row inmates in Korean correctional facilities. Their average age is 58.7, while 17 inmates, or 32.7 percent, are at least 60 years old.

When was the last execution carried out in Korea?

Korea’s last execution took place on Dec. 30, 1997, when 23 people, including members of the Jijonpa murder gang, were put to death during the final year of the Kim Young-sam administration. No execution has been carried out for nearly 30 years.

Who is Korea’s longest-serving death row inmate?

Won Eon-sik, 69, is Korea’s longest-serving death row inmate. He has been held in a correctional facility for 35 years after being convicted of setting fire to a religious facility in Wonju, Gangwon Province, in 1992, killing 15 people.

Korea has 52 death row inmates, average age of 58.7

Listen

Summary

The Justice Ministry said Tuesday that 52 death row inmates are being held in Korean correctional facilities, nearly 30 years after executions were suspended. Their average age is 58.7, and 17 are 60 or older, with inmates in their 50s forming the largest group. Korea’s last execution was carried out on Dec. 30, 1997, while debate over abolishing the death penalty remains unresolved.

Key Facts

The 52 death-sentenced prisoners include Yoo Young-chul and Kang Ho-sun, who were convicted of killing 20 and 10 people, respectively.
Amnesty International has classified Korea as a de facto abolitionist state since 2007.
Won Eon-sik, 69, has been held for 35 years after being convicted of setting fire to a religious facility in Wonju, Gangwon Province, killing 15 people.
Oh Jong-geun died at age 87 in 2024, and Lee Woo-chul died from cancer at Gwangju Correctional Institution in March this year.
Im Do-bin, who killed five people in a 2014 shooting spree at an Army 22nd Division GOP in Goseong, Gangwon Province, is the most recent person sentenced to death.

By Yonhap

Published Oct 6, 2026 3:33 pm KST

Jinju Prison seen from the outside / Korea Times photo by Jang Ryeon-sung

With executions suspended in Korea for nearly 30 years, 52 death row inmates are currently being held in domestic correctional facilities, the justice ministry said Tuesday.

The death row prisoners have an average age of 58.7, while 17, or 32.7 percent, are aged 60 or older, the ministry said, four days ahead of World Day Against the Death Penalty, observed annually on Oct. 10. Those in their 50s make up the largest group, with 29 inmates, it added.

The death-sentenced prisoners include notorious serial killers Yoo Young-chul and Kang Ho-sun, who are currently imprisoned at the Seoul Detention Center after being convicted of killing 20 and 10 people, respectively.

Korea has not carried out an execution for nearly 30 years, with the last execution taking place on Dec. 30, 1997, when 23 people, including members of the Jijonpa murder gang, were put to death in the final year of the Kim Young-sam administration. Amnesty International has classified Korea as a "de facto abolitionist state" since 2007.

The death row population has been aging as the debate over whether to abolish the death penalty remains unresolved. In 2024, Oh Jong-geun, who was convicted in the Boseong fisherman serial murder case, died at the age of 87 from an underlying illness. In March this year, Lee Woo-chul of the "Anyang AP gang," who was convicted of murdering a fellow gang member and the man's girlfriend, also died at the Gwangju Correctional Institution while battling cancer.

Won Eon-sik, 69, who set fire to a religious facility in Wonju, Gangwon Province, in 1992, killing 15 people, has been held in a correctional facility for 35 years, making him the country's longest-serving death row inmate. The most recent person sentenced to death is Im Do-bin, who killed five people in a shooting spree at an Army 22nd Division GOP in Goseong, Gangwon Province, in 2014.

Explore More