‘모텔 약물 연쇄살인’ 김소영 1심서 무기징역 선고

Kim So-young, a 20-year-old woman, was sentenced to life imprisonment with hard labor in her second trial for the drug-facilitated murder of three men. The Seoul Central District Court's 14th Criminal Joint Division, led by Judge O Byung-hwi, handed down the sentence after convicting her on charges of murder, special injury, and other offenses.

Between December of last year and February of this year, she delivered a sedative-laced drink to three men, causing two to die and one to lose consciousness. She is also accused of causing harm to another three men using the same method between October of last year and January of this year. The court found that Kim So-young's actions were "premeditated" and expressed dissatisfaction with her lack of remorse during the trial.

Judge O concluded that she consistently maintained a claim that there was no intent to kill, which he found unconvincing. The court stated that, while the specific risk of death was not apparent, she recognized the risk of death by repeatedly handing multiple drugs to the victims during the process. The verdict did not acknowledge the claim that these actions were intended to prevent sexual contact.

The court found no grounds for rape, and rejected her argument that she only briefly restrained the victims out of concern for sexual violence. However, the court acquitted her of one charge of special injury, related to last December, due to the absence of evidence that she added drugs to wine. For the victims who died, the court acknowledged that Kim So-young may not have been fully aware that her actions would lead to their deaths, and ruled that her actions were "incidental and not deliberate."

The prosecution had previously argued for the death penalty during a public hearing on the 18th. Kim So-young's legal representatives expressed disappointment at the court's decision, stating that they believed the prosecution should have recognized her actions as "deliberate" rather than "incidental," and questioned whether a retrial would be necessary.