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| ▲ An undated file photo shows a court flag. (Yonhap) |
'spin kick' case-court
Appellate court to rule on 'spin kick' assailant in Busan
BUSAN, June 12 (Yonhap) -- An appellate court is set to make a ruling on the so-called "spin kick" assailant in the southeastern port city of Busan later Monday amid growing social resentment over his brutal attacks on a female stranger apparently for the purpose of rape.
The Busan High Court is to hold a sentencing hearing at 2 p.m. for the assailant who was given a 12-year prison term by a district court last October for indiscriminately assaulting the victim in her 20s near her home in central Busan earlier that year.
The defendant, whose identity has been withheld, is accused of following the victim, to whom he had no personal connection, for 10 minutes all the way to her apartment's elevator on May 22, 2022, knocking her out with a roundhouse kick to the back of the head and then kept assaulting her until she passed out.
He was sentenced to imprisonment of 12 years in the district court trial after being convicted of attempted murder. But prosecutors have changed his charges to attempted rape murder after detecting his DNA in the jeans worn by her at the time of the assault and demanded a prison term of 35 years in the appellate court hearing.
Prosecutors said the defendant deserved a far heavier sentence, saying he threw the roundhouse kick to her head for the purpose of sexual assault, dragged her to a security camera blind spot and took off her clothes.
The defendant admitted to the assaults but denied any intent of murder or rape.
The "spin kick" assault case has drawn strong media attention after the victim argued that the defendant vowed a revenge murder against her in prison, and his identity and face photo have been arbitrarily disclosed by a YouTuber and a Seoul city councilor.
One of the defendant's former fellow prisoners reportedly said he openly mentioned retaliation against the victim in the cell, prompting the Ministry of Justice to vow to strengthen its special monitoring of him and make efforts to prevent retaliatory crimes.
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