Prosecutors seek life sentence for man in his 50s over Suyu-dong restaurant stabbing murder, saying he "shows no remorse"

[The Financial News] Prosecutors have sought a life sentence for a man in his 50s who attacked a restaurant owner and his wife with a weapon in Suyu-dong, Gangbuk-gu, Seoul, killing the wife and leaving the husband in critical condition.
According to the legal community on the 10th, at a sentencing hearing held before the 14th Criminal Division of the Seoul Northern District Court, presided over by Presiding Judge Oh Byung-hee of the 14th Criminal Division of the Seoul Northern District Court, prosecutors requested life imprisonment for Mr. Kim (59), who has been detained and indicted on charges of murder and attempted murder.
Prosecutors argued that a severe punishment was necessary and strongly criticized the defendant. The prosecutor stated, "The defendant committed a crime close to a so-called 'random killing,' yet he has not shown genuine remorse. The method of the crime was brutal, and the nature of the offense is particularly egregious."
Prosecutors also asked the court to order 30 years of electronic monitoring and probation. They further requested additional measures, including at least one psychiatric treatment or counseling session per month with a specialist during the electronic monitoring period, a ban on drinking that would result in a blood alcohol concentration of 0.03% or higher (license suspension level), and a restraining order prohibiting him from approaching the surviving victim within 100 meters.
Mr. Kim's attorney argued that it was difficult to recognize premeditation and asked the court to consider this in sentencing. The lawyer said, "Rather than being planned in advance, the crime was committed after a long-standing severe pathological condition manifested in a state of extreme intoxication, causing him to lose control."
When the judge asked Mr. Kim whether he had anything he wished to say, he only nodded without speaking. He requested that the court deny the prosecution's request for an electronic monitoring order. In an earlier hearing, Mr. Kim admitted the facts of the indictment but claimed he could not remember the circumstances of the crime.
According to prosecutors, on October 26 last year, Mr. Kim visited the restaurant run by the victim couple as a customer and caused a disturbance, claiming he had not received a 1,000-won lottery ticket that was given for cash payments. He then pulled out a camping knife and repeatedly stabbed the restaurant's female owner, identified as A, killing her. He also attempted to kill her husband, B, who tried to stop him, but the crime was interrupted when police arrested him. B was found to have suffered injuries requiring six weeks of medical treatment.
The sentencing hearing for Mr. Kim is scheduled to be held at 10 a.m. on April 9 at the Seoul Northern District Court.
jyseo@fnnews.com Seo Ji-yoon Reporter