Court gives 20 years for brutal assault on woman in Busan

Social Affairs

Published: 12 Jun. 2023, 17:42 Updated: 12 Jun. 2023, 20:49

Court gives 20 years for brutal assault on woman in Busan

People stand in a long line awaiting the appellate court decision on a man accused of attempted murder and sexual assault of a woman in her 20s at the Busan High Court on Monday. The assailant, who knocked the woman down with a roundhouse kick near her home in Busan last year, was sentenced to 20 years in prison. [YONHAP]

The Busan High Court sentenced a 31-year-old man to 20 years in prison for the attempted murder and sexual assault of a woman in her 20s in Busan last year on Monday.

On May 22, 2022, the man knocked the woman down with a roundhouse kick to the back of her head and kept assaulting her in the hallway of the first floor of her apartment building in Busanjin District until she lost consciousness.

The assailant had chased the young woman, a stranger, for around 10 minutes following her to her home at around 5 a.m. that day.

After knocking her out, he is accused of dragging her to a blind spot that could not be captured by CCTV. He allegedly tried to take off her clothes and sexually assault her. He escaped from the building seven minutes later.

The incident became described as the "Busan roundhouse kick case," and ignited public fury after the man was sentenced to only 12 years by a lower court after being convicted of attempted murder. Much of the public condemned this as a mere slap on the wrist for what appeared to be an act of indiscriminate violence and brutality.

The victim appealed the sentence. During the appeal process, prosecutors found additional evidence such as the assailant's DNA inside and outside the victim's jeans and her cardigan.

Prosecutors demanded a heavier prison term of 35 years after finding such further evidence he had tried to rape her, on top of attempted murder.

In Monday's ruling, the Busan High Court recognized the charges of attempted sexual assault, on top of murder, handing the assailant a longer prison term than the district court, though falling short of the prosecution's recommendation.

The judge recognized that the defendant "committed the crime as a means of sexual violence against the victim."

The appellate court also ordered the disclosure of personal information of the assailant in public communications networks for 10 years and issued a 10-year employment ban at institutions related to children or young people and organizations related to the disabled. He is also required to wear an electronic tracking device for 20 years.

The judge found that the defendant tried to take off the victim's pants in the CCTV blind spot and determined this was "an assault for sexual violence, not a simple assault."

The judge recognized that even if the attack against the woman, with whom he had no prior acquaintance, had not been premeditated, the "victim may have died in the process" of the assault, noting she had been bleeding.

The defendant, during his imprisonment, revealed to another prisoner his intention to retaliate against the victim and the people around her, expressing "strong hostility," according to the judge.

The defendant had a previous criminal record prior to the Busan incident.

The judge added, "The victim brought up her fears and pleaded for severe punishment."

Earlier Monday morning, President Yoon Suk Yeol ordered the Ministry of Justice to promptly devise measures to enable the "disclosure of the identities of perpetrators of violent crimes against women" at a meeting of senior secretaries, said the presidential office in a statement.

The Justice Ministry plans to submit a related bill to the National Assembly as soon as possible, said Lee Do-woon, the presidential spokesman, in a press briefing later Monday.

Speaking to reporters after the court ruling, the victim said tearfully, "He will be 50 years old when he is released from prison, and there is only a four-year age difference between him and me. How can I live if no one protects me?"

BY SARAH KIM [kim.sarah@joongang.co.kr]