A 20-year-old wife on trial for allegedly abusing and killing her two-year-old son in Changnyeong, South Gyeongsang Province, along with her husband, has partially denied the charges, claiming she merely followed her husband's orders.

On the 12th, the Criminal Division 1 of the Miryang Branch of the Changwon District Court (Presiding Judge Han Yun-ok) held the third trial for a 20-year-old man, referred to as A, and his 20-year-old wife, referred to as B, who were indicted under the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment, etc. of Child Abuse Crimes for child abuse resulting in death.

During the trial, B, who took the stand as a witness regarding A, testified that she acted as her husband instructed and partially denied the accusation that she had bound the child using an adult shirt for abuse.

B, who was re-imprisoned following her childbirth last month, continued her testimony while holding her newborn baby in her arms.

She claimed, "I tied the child's body so that he would not be scolded by A for wandering around instead of sleeping," adding, "I knew it was an emergency situation when the child was dying, but A told me not to call 119, so I did not."

She further stated, "I was terrified because A threatened that he would not let me go if I reported it."

A and B were detained and indicted on charges of leaving their two-year-old son, C, who was showing symptoms of dehydration due to child abuse at their home in Changnyeong County last January, unattended without any measures, leading to his death.

It was found that A assaulted his son for long periods under the pretext that he "would not sleep," while B bound C with an adult shirt to prevent him from moving during the crime.

Although C showed signs of dehydration, the couple failed to take active measures, and C ultimately died.

Previously, during the first trial of this case in May, prosecutors demanded a one-year and six-month prison sentence for A's father-in-law, D, who was indicted without detention on charges of abandoning a corpse after putting the body of C, who died from abuse, into a hemp sack along with A and abandoning it in an abandoned house in Namji-eup, Changnyeong.

The next trial for this case is scheduled for 2:00 PM on the 21st.

Aside from this case, it was revealed that A and B had previously been indicted on charges including special injury and violations of the Welfare of Persons with Disabilities Act for assaulting and injuring a woman in her 30s with an intellectual disability whom they lived with while she cared for their children and did housework in Daegu between March and May 2021, receiving sentences of two years in prison for A and one year in prison suspended for two years for B, respectively.

In particular, A was also accused of hacking internet gambling sites, deceiving victims by promising to share profits if he manipulated the results, thereby swindling 15,832,200 won, as well as engaging in online fraudulent sales of goods.

At the time of the two-year-old boy's abuse and murder case, the couple reportedly had six children, including the deceased boy, and made a living solely on government subsidies such as multi-child allowances without engaging in any notable economic activities.

(Photo: Yonhap News)