Army Major Sentenced to Life Imprisonment for Murdering Colleague

A South Korean army major, Yang Kwang-jun (양광준), aged 39, has been sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of a female military civil servant, identified as A (33). The ruling was made by the Chuncheon District Court on March 20, 2025.

Yang was found guilty of killing A on October 25, 2024, in a parking lot at a military base in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province. Following the murder, he dismembered her body and disposed of it in the Bukhan River in Hwacheon, Gangwon Province.

Investigations revealed that Yang, who was married, committed the crime to prevent his extramarital affair with A from being exposed. His actions were described as premeditated and meticulous. To ensure the body would not float, he placed stones in the plastic bag containing A's remains. He also used a forged license plate during the crime and attempted to cover up his actions by sending text messages to A's family using her phone after the murder.

During the trial, Yang claimed that he acted impulsively due to extreme stress and fear of A's threats to reveal their affair. However, the court rejected this defense, noting the calculated nature of his actions, including the use of a laptop security cable to strangle A and the efforts to simulate her presence by sending messages as if she had returned home. The court also considered the brutal dismemberment of the body and the victim's family's demand for severe punishment in its sentencing.