[Exclusive] Prosecution appeals undue leniency on “medical student murder case”

[Anchor]

The perpetrator of the so-called "medical student murder case", who killed his girlfriend after she broke up with him, was recently sentenced to 26 years in prison in the first trial.

The prosecution has appealed, stating that the sentence is too lenient.

KBS met with the victim's family after the first trial verdict to hear their story.

Reporter Lee Ho-jun has the story.

[Report]

Ms. A, who was murdered by her medical student boyfriend, was a prime example victim of "dating violence."

She registered her marriage with her boyfriend, Choi, just 53 days after they started dating.

[Victim's Father/voice altered: "(Choi) said before going abroad, 'If you truly love me, show me a sign of love,' and that's why they registered the marriage."]

When the family learned of this fact and mentioned they would file for annulment, Choi killed the victim in less than a month's time.

Until the moment of the crime, Choi held normal conversations with the victim.

[Victim's Sister/voice altered: "The defendant (Choi) told the victim, 'I'll buy chicken and some drinks,' but it turned out that he was actually buying a weapon and duct tape at that time."]

There were also indications that the victim was under psychological control by the perpetrator.

[Jung Byung-hwan/Victim's lawyer: "(Choi) directly told the victim, 'If you meet another man, I will stab you to death.' The victim described (Choi) to her friend as 'someone who still loves her.']

Although the crime was premeditated, the court dismissed the request for electronic monitoring, stating that the likelihood of reoffending was low.

The reasoning was that since Choi had no prior criminal record and had an impulsive nature, it was not conclusive that he would definitely kill someone else.

This perspective is in stark contrast to that of investigative agencies, which report a high rate of recidivism for dating violence.

[Lee Eun-ui/Lawyer: "Even though he has never committed a crime before, he committed a violent crime as his first offense. Shouldn't extreme harm be a reason for aggravation rather than leniency?"]

The prosecution, which had previously sought the death penalty for Choi, has appealed the first trial verdict.

This is KBS News, Lee Ho-jun.