Seoul court sentences hospital director, surgeon and patient for abortion case turned murder trial

A court on Wednesday sentenced a hospital director to six years in prison for murder after he and a surgeon performed a cesarean section on a woman who had sought an abortion at 36 weeks pregnant and then killed the newborn.

The Seoul Central District Court in Seocho District, southern Seoul, is pictured on Feb. 18. [NEWS1]

A court on Wednesday sentenced a hospital director to six years in prison for murder after he and a surgeon performed a cesarean section on a woman who had sought an abortion at 36 weeks pregnant and then killed the newborn.

The Seoul Central District Court sentenced the hospital director, surnamed Yoon, to six years in prison and a fine of 1.5 million won ($1,020). The surgeon who carried out the operation, surnamed Shim, received a four-year prison sentence.

The woman, surnamed Kwon, received a three-year prison sentence suspended for five years. The court also ordered her to complete 200 hours of community service.

Prosecutors said Yoon and Shim performed the surgery in June 2024 when Kwon was between 34 and 36 weeks pregnant. After delivering the baby, they covered the newborn with a prepared cloth and placed the infant in a freezer, killing the child.

Yoon was also charged with falsely recording symptoms such as bleeding and abdominal pain in Kwon’s medical records to make it appear the fetus had been stillborn. He was also accused of issuing a false stillbirth certificate after news of the procedure became public and sparked controversy.

The case came to light in 2024 after Kwon posted a YouTube video documenting her experience titled “Total surgery cost 9 million won, 120 hours that felt like hell.” The video sparked debate over whether the incident constituted murder, and the Ministry of Health and Welfare filed a complaint with police in July that year.

Investigators said Yoon performed abortions to earn income as his hospital faced financial difficulties.

Prosecutors had sought a 10-year prison sentence for Yoon, along with a 5 million won fine and the seizure of 1.15 billion won in alleged criminal proceeds. They requested six-year prison terms for both Kwon and Shim.

Then-Constitutional Court President Yoo Nam-seok and justices enter the main courtroom of the Constitutional Court in Seoul on April 11, 2019, to deliver a ruling on the constitutionality of a law that criminalized abortion. The court ruled the ban unconstitutional that day. [NEWS1]

The court held the three responsible for murder, saying the fetus was capable of survival after leaving its mother’s body because it had a normal heartbeat and no detected abnormalities.

But the court also ruled it would be excessive to place full responsibility for murder solely on the defendants, citing legal uncertainty following the Constitutional Court’s 2019 ruling that struck down the criminal ban on abortion. Pregnancy terminations have remained in a legal vacuum since then, after lawmakers failed to introduce new legislation.

The court also noted that a special act designed to protect so-called pregnant women in crisis — those facing difficulties giving birth and raising a child due to economic, psychological and physical reasons — only took effect in July 2024, meaning Kwon did not receive state protection.

Kwon "appears to have learned of the pregnancy only shortly before the crime due to a misdiagnosis at the time,” the court said. “It is difficult to rule out the possibility that she committed the crime because she believed that giving birth would make both her and the child unhappy.”

Still, the court said Kwon deserved strict punishment but handed down a suspended sentence because "social and legal protections for women with unplanned pregnancies remain insufficient."

Meanwhile, one broker, surnamed Han, whom prosecutors said referred pregnant women to Yoon, received a one-year prison sentence and was ordered to forfeit 219.95 million won.

Another broker, surnamed Bae, who worked with Han, received a 10-month prison sentence suspended for two years and was ordered to forfeit 92 million won.

Prosecutors had sought a three-year prison sentence and confiscation of 311.95 million won for Han and a prison term of one year and six months for Bae.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom. BY CHO MUN-GYU, KIM JU-YEON [kim.juyeon2@joongang.co.kr]