Imprisoned for 23 Hours... Brutal Traces Found Across Body

A group of individuals in their teens and twenties who subjected a victim to severe abuse, including locking them up for 23 hours, beating them with a baseball bat, and spraying ignited hairspray onto their body, have been sentenced to prison.

The 6th Criminal Division of the Busan District Court (Presiding Judge Lim Seong-chul) sentenced a ringleader in his twenties, identified as A, to three years in prison, and a teenager, B, to one year and two months in prison on charges including robbery, special quasi-robbery resulting in injury, and violations of the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Sexual Crimes.

Another teenager, C, who participated in the crime, was sentenced to one year in prison suspended for two years.

The court also ordered A to complete 40 hours of a sexual violence treatment program and placed a three-year employment restriction on institutions related to children and adolescents.

They were put on trial on charges of taking the victim to an officetel and a motel on October 28 of last year, confining and assaulting them for approximately 23 hours.

According to the indictment, after A brought the victim to the officetel, B, who was waiting there, struck the victim's buttocks with a baseball bat, and A also repeatedly beat the victim's entire body with fists and a baseball bat.

A was also charged with lighting a lighter and spraying hairspray toward the victim's torso during the confinement, inflicting second-degree burns on the abdomen, thighs, and arms.

Additionally, A was charged with taking unauthorized photos of the victim standing naked from behind, forcing the victim—who was terrified by the violence and abuse—to sell a mobile phone, and extorting 650,000 won in sales proceeds by having it wired to himself.

The court stated, "Defendant A unilaterally demanded the repayment of money from the victim, repeatedly struck them with a baseball bat, and subjected them to brutal abuse, including indiscriminate beating of their entire body while confining them for two days and one night," adding, "In determining the sentence, we considered factors such as the fact that the defendant admitted to the crime and reached a settlement with the victim."

The court continued, "Defendant B actively participated in the violence against the victim, with whom he had no particular conflict of interest, simply at the request of A, and committed the crime during a repeated offender probation period for bodily injury. However, we took into consideration that the defendant admitted to the crime, reached a settlement with the victim, and was an 18-year-old minor at the time." It further explained, "Defendant C also participated in the confinement, but the court took into account that he admitted to the crime, settled with the victim, and was an 18-year-old minor at the time."

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.