Bereaved families of two victims in the Seoul motel drug killings filed a civil damages suit against a female suspect and her parents, legal sources said Tuesday.
The victims' families filed the suit with the Seoul Northern District Court on Monday. They are seeking compensation from the suspect, a 20-year-old woman identified as Kim So-young, and her parents.
The families estimated their losses at around 1.1 billion won ($730,000), but lowered their claim to 31 million won, citing litigation costs and the suspect's limited ability to pay. They are also seeking 1 million won from the suspect’s parents, citing their responsibility for her supervision, given that she had only recently become an adult.
Kim is suspected of killing two men by giving them drugged drinks containing benzodiazepine — a depressant — at a motel in Seoul’s Gangbuk district, and injuring four men with drug-laced drinks between last December and February.
She was indicted in March under physical detention on charges of murder, special bodily injury and violating the Narcotics Control Act.
Authorities believe she killed the victims to avoid conflict after exploiting them for financial gain, and that the crimes were premeditated.
Police earlier assessed Kim as a psychopath after she scored within the range for antisocial personality disorder on the Hare Psychopathy Checklist-Revised.
Kim is set to stand trial on Thursday.
junheee@heraldcorp.com
