Yang Jeong-ryeol (32), the defendant in the "Gimcheon officetel murder case," who killed a man he did not know and took out a loan using the victim's fingerprints, has been sentenced to life in prison with finality.
The Supreme Court's First Division, presided over by Justice Roh Tae-ak, said on Jan. 9 that on Dec. 6 it upheld the lower court's ruling sentencing Yang Jeong-cheol, indicted on charges including robbery and murder, attempted abandonment of a corpse, fraud by using a computer, and violation of the Specialized Credit Financial Business Act, to life in prison.
The court said, "The defendant planned the killing and then carried it out casually according to the plan, and without a shred of remorse used the victim's money to satisfy personal financial desires," adding, "The defendant showed an extremely brutal, inhuman attitude, including attempting to abandon the body," in explaining the sentence.
The court also said, "The defendant has not been forgiven by the victim's bereaved family," and, "The family is living in great shock and grief, in painful circumstances."
In Nov. 2024, Yang Jeong-ryeol deceived his way into an officetel in Gimcheon, North Gyeongsang Province, by posing as a security guard, then fatally stabbed A (31), who was on the way home, and took valuables. Using A's ID and card, Yang bought necessities at convenience stores, used taxis and lodging, and spent hundreds of thousands of won, and took out a 60 million won loan using the fingerprint from the body.
When A's parents became worried because they could not reach their son, Yang Jeong-ryeol also sent text messages pretending to be A. After quitting his job in 2023 and running out of loan money, Yang went to Gimcheon, where he had previously lived, and committed the crime.
Prosecutors sought the maximum sentence allowed by law, the death penalty, for Yang Jeong-ryeol. Yang was sentenced to life in prison at the first trial, and the appellate court upheld the lower court's ruling.