Man gets 10 years for killing ex-roommate over unpaid rent

A Seoul court sentenced a man to 10 years in prison, Monday, for stabbing his former roommate to death earlier this year following a row over unpaid rent.

The Seoul Central District Court handed the prison term down to the 35-year-old man, identified only by his surname, Kim.

According to court records, Kim was accused of stabbing the victim multiple times inside a home they had shared in Gangnam, southern Seoul, Jan. 17. 

The two had been friends for 10 years, the court heard, and had agreed to share the home and equally split both the 10 million won ($8,860) deposit and the 1.65 million won monthly rent.

But when the victim failed to pay the rent on time and his personal debt to Kim exceeded 20 million won, police say Kim asked the victim to resolve the matter quickly. According to police, the victim refused to pay and told Kim that the amount he owed was not all that much.

After the argument, police said the victim packed his bags and stopped returning Kim’s calls, but Kim persisted and eventually lured him back.

During the court proceedings, the defendant claimed his action had only been “a scare tactic” and that he had not intended to injure the victim.

By Catherine Chung (cec82@heraldcorp.com)