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Man sentenced to 20 years for murdering father with dementia

Published: 05 Nov. 2025, 17:09

An image of a statue of Justitia, the goddess of justice [KOREA JOONGANG DAILY]

A man in his 50s has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for beating his father, who was suffering from dementia, to death after holding a grudge against him.

The Suwon District Court recently handed down the prison term to the man convicted of patricide, according to court officials Wednesday. The court dismissed prosecutors’ requests for an electronic monitoring device and probationary supervision.

“The defendant brutally killed his biological father by striking his face dozens of times and repeatedly hitting his head, face and neck with an electric fan,” the court said in its ruling. “Murder is a heinous crime that violates the most fundamental and inviolable value — human life — and can never be justified under any circumstance.”

"The victim was the defendant’s parent, and the crime was committed in an extremely cruel manner," added the court. "It is believed that the victim suffered intense pain after being attacked unexpectedly by his own son."

Police had initially referred the case to prosecutors on the lesser charge of injury resulting in death, but prosecutors later upgraded the charge to murder, citing clear intent.

The man was accused of killing his father, who was in his 80s, around midnight on Aug. 21 at an apartment in Bundang District, Seongnam, Gyeonggi, by punching him multiple times.

Police arrested the man at the scene after being alerted by his older brother. He was reportedly intoxicated at the time of the incident. During questioning, the man told police that he had “felt resentment toward his father for a long time.”

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY JUNG SI-NAE [[email protected]]