Image for illustrative purposes only. [Getty Images Bank]
Image for illustrative purposes only. [Getty Images Bank]

A man in his 40s who sexually abused his underage daughter and fed his young children formula mixed with soju has been sentenced to prison. He has appealed the ruling.

The first criminal division of the Miryang branch of Changwon District Court sentenced the man, identified only as A, to seven years in prison Friday on charges including aggravated indecent act by a relative under the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Sexual Violence Crimes.

The court also ordered him to complete 40 hours each of sexual violence and child abuse treatment programs and barred him from working at institutions involving children or youth for 10 years.

A's wife, a woman in her 40s identified as B, who was indicted alongside him, received a six-month prison sentence suspended for two years. She was also ordered to complete 40 hours of a child abuse treatment program.

A was indicted on charges of repeatedly sexually assaulting his daughter and physically and mentally abusing his three minor children at a residence in South Gyeongsang Province between 2024 and 2025. He also faced charges of feeding his children formula mixed with soju during that period.

B was brought to trial for neglect after she kept one of her three children out of school in 2024 without cause, failing to provide basic education.

"As a result of A's crimes, the children appear to have been left defenseless against sexual violations and various forms of abuse within their own home for a considerable period, suffering severe mental and physical trauma," the court said, adding that strict punishment was warranted.

The court also said B "neglected her children by keeping one out of school, despite being their mother and having a duty to protect them." It noted that neither A nor B had prior criminal convictions beyond fines or for similar offenses, a factor weighed in determining the sentences.

A filed an appeal against the ruling.


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