Man in His 60s Sentenced to Prison for Attempted Murder After Adding Pesticide to Villagers' Spicy Fish Stew, Claiming "To Catch Flies"

Nobody Ate the Stew Due to Strange Smell, Avoiding Harm
Claimed Diminished Responsibility, but Court Says "Severe Punishment is Necessary"

A man in his 60s who put pesticide into spicy fish stew being prepared for the villagers has been sentenced to prison in his appeal trial as well.

Spicy fish stew photo. Stock photo unrelated to the article. Photo by The Asia Business Daily Database

On September 16, the Criminal Division 1 of the Chuncheon Panel of Seoul High Court (Chief Judge Lee Eunhye) dismissed the prosecutor's appeal in the sentencing hearing for Mr. A (62), who was charged with attempted murder, and upheld the original sentence of one year and six months in prison.

Previously, in June 2024 in Chuncheon, Mr. A was indicted on charges of attempting to kill an unspecified number of people after he sprinkled pesticide into a spicy fish stew prepared by villagers for lunch while he was intoxicated. The attempt was unsuccessful.

The villagers noticed a strange smell from the spicy fish stew and, becoming suspicious, nobody ate it, so there were no casualties. The amount of pesticide added was also not significant.

In the first trial, Mr. A argued that he was heavily intoxicated at the time, and insisted he put in the pesticide to catch flies, saying he could not remember the specific circumstances, claiming diminished responsibility.

However, the court stated, “Although the crime ended in attempted murder that could not be completed, it is still necessary to impose a severe punishment,” and sentenced him to prison, taking him into custody in the courtroom.

The prosecution, which had requested a sentence of two years and six months, appealed on the grounds that the punishment was too lenient, but the appellate court found the original sentencing appropriate and dismissed the appeal.

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