Man in South Korea allegedly stabs wife to death in front of their 5-year-old daughter over divorce

Man kills his wife in presence of 5-year-old daughter

A man in Gwangju, Gyeonggi Province, South Korea, was arrested after allegedly killing his wife amidst their divorce proceedings.

Authorities also found that their 5-year-old daughter was present at the scene at the time of the incident.

The suspect was later identified as a civil servant in his 30s surnamed Yeom.

He claimed he committed the act because he believed he would be at a disadvantage in the divorce.

Man stabs wife over 20 times

The incident happened at around 7.17am on 1 Sept at a multi-family home.

Yeom reportedly waited near the entrance of the building before stabbing his wife over 20 times on the stairs as she was leaving for work.

At the time, their daughter was also at the scene. Fortunately, she was not seriously injured.

The victim was taken to hospital, but later died.

According to KBS, residents initially thought a fight had broken out after seeing police cars and ambulances arrive.

“I saw police cars arriving, and I thought someone was just fighting. But they said there was a lot of blood,” a neighbour said.

After the attack, Yeom fled on his motorcycle. Police later arrested him at a motel in Suwon Province about four hours after the incident.

Victim had reported domestic violence five times

Police said the victim had previously reported domestic violence involving her husband five times.

She first reported being assaulted by Yeom in March and filed four other domestic violence reports this year.

Police even issued her a smartwatch as a safety measure after the reports.

Authorities added that Yeom had previously threatened the victim with a weapon and used physical force against responding officers.

Police had sought a detention warrant for obstruction of official duties, but it was rejected due to insufficient concerns over possible evidence destruction or flight.

At the time of the murder, the victim had been staying at her younger brother’s home.

Suspect found victim’s address in divorce petition

On 22 Sept, the Seongnam Branch of the Suwon District Prosecutors’ Office said Yeom, who is in police custody, was indicted on charges including retaliatory murder and child abuse.

It was also revealed that the suspect was banned from approaching the victim when the incident occurred.

During the investigation, Yeom said he committed the crime because he believed the results of the divorce proceedings would not be favourable for him due to the victim’s domestic violence reports.

In particular, he was concerned about property division and child custody.

It was also reported that the suspect found the victim’s temporary address through the divorce petition, bringing attention to loopholes in victim protection, SBS reported.

Also read: Man in Taiwan kills wife & sister-in-law in broad daylight, reveals murders on Facebook

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Featured image adapted from KBS News.