"Why Didn't You Let Me Out": Passenger Who Beat and Strangled Taxi Driver Gets Suspended Sentence

Slapped the Driver 10 Times and Strangled Him for 10 Minutes While Intoxicated

A man in his seventies who, while intoxicated, assaulted a taxi driver and strangled him with a seatbelt for not complying with his request to let him out of the taxi, has been sentenced to imprisonment with a suspended sentence.

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On September 26, Judge Kim Cheonsu of the Seoul Northern District Court's Criminal Division 8 announced that he had sentenced Mr. A (aged 79), who was indicted on charges including violation of the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes for assaulting a driver, to six months in prison with a two-year suspension.

Mr. A was brought to trial on charges of assaulting Mr. B, a taxi driver in his sixties, inside a moving taxi this past February.

At the time, while passing the Naebu Expressway in Seongbuk-gu, Seoul, Mr. A slapped Mr. B's right cheek about ten times with his palm because Mr. B did not comply with his request. He then wrapped the driver's seatbelt around Mr. B's neck and pulled on it for approximately ten minutes. As the taxi was moving on the road at the time, it was a dangerous situation that could have resulted in a traffic accident.

Judge Kim noted, "Assaulting a driver while driving on the Naebu Expressway posed significant risk of an accident, and the degree of violence was not minor." However, the judge also took into account that Mr. A admitted to his crime, paid Mr. B 3 million won for restitution, and that the victim submitted both a withdrawal of complaint and a letter of leniency stating he did not want Mr. A to be punished.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.