An image depicting child abuse. [Getty Images Bank]
An image depicting child abuse. [Getty Images Bank]

A woman in her 60s who subjected her stepdaughters to a decade of severe abuse — including forcing them to eat rice mixed with human waste — has been sentenced to seven years in prison.

According to legal sources Wednesday, Judge Ji Yun-seop of the Cheongju District Court's Criminal Division 3 sentenced the defendant, identified only as A, on charges of violating the Child Welfare Act.

A was indicted on charges of abusing her stepdaughters, including a girl identified as B, on 53 separate occasions between 2014 and 2023.

A would give the sisters large portions of food and force them to eat rice mixed with feces and urine if they failed to finish within an hour. Investigators found she also prevented them from bathing or washing their clothes for up to two weeks at a time, permitting basic hygiene only on days she designated as "forgiven days."

She physically assaulted the girls over minor issues, threatened them with weapons, and forced them to assault each other — all to deceive her husband, identified as C, into believing she was sacrificing herself to manage the troublesome sisters.

She also repeatedly coerced the girls into sending their father sexually explicit text messages, subjecting them to emotional abuse as well.

The husband lived and slept at his workplace and was unaware of the abuse. The sisters, kept under A's control, were unable to inform their father of what was happening.

The abuse came to light in April 2023, when a passerby spotted B fleeing the house wearing only pajamas and reported a suspected case of child abuse.

A denied the charges, claiming the sisters had mental health issues and had given false testimony, but the court rejected her argument.

"The defendant flatly denied the abuse during the investigation, but acknowledged only the specific portions for which objective evidence — including audio recordings — was presented," Judge Ji said. "B's psychiatric evaluation also found no significant abnormalities."

The judge went on to say that "B fled the house in only her pajamas in April 2023, and the investigation began after a passerby reported it," adding that it was reasonable to conclude B did not leave home out of ordinary discontent but because she could no longer endure the abuse.

The judge further noted that A had claimed the sisters overate because they liked food and had poor hygiene because they disliked bathing. "B's school performance improved and her hygiene got better immediately after she left the house," the judge said, adding that the sentence reflected the defendant's failure to show sincere remorse.


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