Jo Jae-bok denied some of the charges at the first trial after being indicted on charges of beating his mother-in-law to death and abandoning the body by putting it in a suitcase. In court, he also argued there was no intent to kill.
The Criminal Division 13 of the Daegu District Court (Presiding Judge Chae Hee-in) held the first hearing for Jo Jae-bok on the 21st on charges including murder, abandonment of a corpse, and aggravated unlawful confinement causing injury.
Jo Jae-bok was brought to trial on charges of fatally beating his mother-in-law, a woman in her 50s identified as A, for a long time in a studio apartment in Jung-gu, Daegu, on Mar. 18, and then abandoning the body by putting it in a suitcase along a nearby riverside.
The case came to light on the 31st of the same month, when a citizen reported, "There is a suspicious suitcase." After confirming the identity of the body, police identified Jo Jae-bok as a suspect and urgently arrested Jo and his wife, identified as B, that afternoon.
During the investigation, Jo Jae-bok is said to have given statements indicating his motive, such as "I was annoyed because she was being noisy" and "She didn't pack up her belongings."
Prosecutors said Jo Jae-bok routinely assaulted and retaliated against his wife, B, and determined that at the time of the crime B was in a state where it was difficult to resist, so B was not indicted.
Jo Jae-bok's side admitted the charge of abandoning a corpse but denied the charges of aggravated confinement and aggravated unlawful confinement causing injury.
The attorney said, "It is true that he told his spouse, 'I will call gangsters and bury you alive,' but it was not said to the mother-in-law," and argued, "The home camera was installed only to look after the dog, not for surveillance." The attorney added that there was no locking device at the residence, so the victims could go out of their own accord.
When the court asked whether there was intent to kill, Jo Jae-bok answered, "I really had no intention of killing my mother-in-law," and "I didn't think a person would die from being hit to this extent."
At the next hearing, the court plans to call Jo Jae-bok's wife, B, as a witness to examine the circumstances of the crime and whether she was involved.
The next hearing will be held at 10 a.m. on Jul. 2.