The first trial was held for a man in his 20s indicted on charges of fatally stabbing his romantic partner in Gangdong-gu, Seoul, after she asked to end their relationship.
Prosecutors stated that the man committed the murder because the victim "did not look apologetic when she told him they were breaking up," and the defendant admitted to all the charges in the indictment.
During the first hearing on charges of murder held at the Seoul Eastern District Court, the defense counsel for the defendant in his 20s, identified as A, answered "We admit to all" when the court asked whether they acknowledged the facts of the indictment.
However, regarding the prosecution's request for a probation order and the attachment of an electronic tracking device due to a high risk of reoffending, the defense requested their dismissal, claiming there is no risk of reoffending and that there are extenuating circumstances.
Defendant A is accused of murdering his girlfriend in her 20s during an argument in Gangdong-gu, Seoul, at around 3:30 AM on June 1, using a frying pan, a weapon, and an electrical wire.
Investigators also found that he stayed at the victim's residence even though she did not want him there, and prosecutors stated that A "decided to commit the crime because the victim did not show an apologetic attitude when notifying him of the breakup."
Right after the crime, A fled the scene, turned himself in at a police station in another jurisdiction, and was emergency arrested before being transferred into custody on the 9th of last month.
Prosecutors indicted A after uncovering circumstances pointing to a premeditated murder through a forensic analysis of his mobile phone, which revealed search histories for terms such as "brain location" and "skull structure" prior to the crime, as well as visits to a blog post titled "If the head is hit repeatedly... is the brain really okay?"
The next hearing for A is scheduled for August 26.
Reported by Kim Taewon | Video by Jang Yujin | Graphics by Yang Hyemin | Produced by SBS Digital News
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