A man who strangled his terminally-ill wife to death was sentenced to seven years in jail, as the court acknowledged the difficulties of the defendant but said a strict punishment is necessary to prevent similar crimes in the future.
The Suwon District Court recently found the defendant, in his 70s, guilty of murder, which is punishable by a minimum of five years in prison and a maximum of the death penalty under the Criminal Act.
"The court took into consideration the facts that the defendant reported his own crime to the police, the victim was diagnosed with terminal cancer and appears to have suffered physical pain in everyday life, and paying the medical costs would have been a considerable burden as neither the defendant or the victim has substantial assets or were active financially. Nonetheless, the (defendant's) fault is not light by any means," the court said as it handed out the guilty verdict.
The defendant has been accused of attacking his wife, in her 60s, at their home in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, at around 12:23 a.m. of Oct. 2, 2024. The victim was taken to a nearby hospital for emergency medical treatment, but died.
The defendant told police that he has been taking care of his sick wife since she was diagnosed with terminal breast cancer in August 2024, which he said became too much of a burden for him. He said that the victim frequently pleaded him to kill her, and that his actions were to "rid her of pain" as it was impossible for them to pay the medical bills and there was no one else to take care of him.
minsikyoon@heraldcorp.com
