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Two men who attempted to kidnap, rob, and murder the representative of a small and medium-sized company, whom they had never met before, in the underground parking lot of an apartment complex in Bupyeong-gu, Incheon, have been sent to trial. Although the police initially forwarded the case on charges of simple aggravated assault, the prosecution uncovered evidence of premeditation and the involvement of accomplices after conducting a supplementary investigation.
On November 26, the Criminal Division 1 of the Incheon District Prosecutors’ Office announced that Mr. A (38, naturalized from China) has been indicted in custody on charges of attempted robbery-murder and preparation for robbery. Mr. B (32, Chinese national), who assisted in the crime, was also indicted in custody on charges of aiding aggravated robbery and preparing for robbery.
According to prosecutors, in July, A attempted to kidnap the victim, a 61-year-old male identified as Mr. C, in the underground parking lot of an apartment complex in Bupyeong-gu, Incheon, with the intent to steal valuables and kill him. B is accused of acting as an accomplice by helping plan the crime and stalking the victim.
A reportedly covered the victim’s vision using a box coated with adhesive, then tried to subdue him by striking his head with a metal hammer. The victim narrowly escaped, but sustained injuries requiring two weeks of medical treatment.
The investigation found that B had discussed the crime in advance with A and helped prepare it, including storing and checking the required tools.
In September, after receiving the case from police, prosecutors noted that A had inquired about selling a large amount of cryptocurrency despite being in serious financial difficulty, leading them to suspect a premeditated crime for financial gain.
After conducting searches of A and B’s residences and analyzing call records, account histories, and visitation records, it was revealed that A had followed the victim and his family for approximately three months, and had purchased various items such as a refrigerated truck, adhesive, a stun gun, and an axe. He was also found to have tried to rent a location to hide the body and even made plans to flee overseas.
There was also evidence that additional victims could have been targeted. A and his accomplice were reportedly stalking another man (59, referred to as Mr. D), who runs a gold shop featured on YouTube, preparing tools to steal gold bars and other valuables. Fortunately, this plan did not result in an actual crime.
