Soldier charged with murder for fatal neglect of wife
An Army soldier is to stand trial for murder in connection with the death of his wife, who was taken to hospital semiconscious with severely infected bedsores, after he belatedly sought medical help.
According to the Army Criminal Investigation Command, the suspect, a noncommissioned officer in his 30s, was referred to military prosecutors on suspicion of causing death through abandonment.
Prosecutors, however, on Monday indicted him on a murder charge, determining that the case constitutes murder by omission, a legal concept that applies when a person with a legal duty to protect or care for another intentionally fails to act, resulting in death.
The officer is accused of failing to seek medical treatment for his wife, who had developed bedsores from as early as August, investigators said. He did not contact emergency services until Nov. 11, when she began to lose conciousness.
When emergency responders arrived, they found the woman, also in her 30s, with extensive bedsores that had begun to rot after the tissue became infected and died. They found maggots in the festering wounds.
She went into cardiac arrest while being transported to a hospital, and although she was resuscitated, she died the following day.
Hospital staff alerted police, and the husband was arrested later that day.
Investigators said the woman had suffered from panic disorder and depression since August and had difficulty moving, though it remains unclear whether this assessment was based on medical records or the suspect’s statements.
Despite her worsening condition, including the development of bedsores, the husband did not take her to a hospital, authorities said.
Public anger has continued to grow as the victim’s family shared with the media outlets how the husband repeatedly assured them she was well cared for, while discouraging or preventing visits to their home.
Comparable cases have drawn attention overseas. In 2023, a Louisiana couple was indicted on second-degree murder charges in the death of their 36-year-old daughter, who was found severely malnourished and fused to a feces-covered couch. Investigators said she had skin ulcers, maggots and signs of prolonged neglect.
The daughter had been diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome, and her parents told authorities she had not seen a doctor for years.
In South Korea, convictions for murder by omission are rare.
In one of the most high-profile cases, in September 2023, the Supreme Court upheld murder-by-omission convictions for Lee Eun-hae and her boyfriend, who prosecutors said coerced Lee’s husband, who feared water, into jumping into a stream in a valley without safety equipment, leading to his death.
Lee was sentenced to life in prison, and her accomplice received a 30-year prison term.
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