Child found locked up in suitcase dies

The 9-year-old boy found unconscious in a suitcase in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province, died Wednesday after three days in intensive care, police said Thursday.

The child died from cardiopulmonary arrest due to multiple organ failures around 6:30 p.m. Wednesday at a local hospital.

He was found inside a 44-centimeter-wide and 60-centimeter-tall suitcase when paramedics arrived at his stepmother’s apartment.

Police will decide on pressing charges of fatal child abuse against the stepmother after getting autopsy results from the National Forensic Service. A local court has issued an arrest warrant for her, citing the possibility of her escaping and destroying evidence.

It was found through investigation that the woman locked up her stepson for seven hours in a number of suitcases and even left the apartment while leaving him locked up for three hours.

Under the Korean law, those who commit child abuse and put the victim in a critical condition can be sentenced to more than three years in prison. If the victim dies, the penalty can be raised to more than five years in prison.

By Ko Jun-tae (ko.juntae@heraldcorp.com)