Subway Arsonist Gets 12 Years for Attempted Murder After Divorce Rage Blaze on Seoul Line 5
A 67-year-old man surnamed Won has been sentenced to 12 years in prison by the Seoul Southern District Court (Criminal Division 15, Judge Yang Hwan-seung) for attempted murder and arson of an inhabited structure after setting fire inside a Seoul subway train.
🔹 Case Summary
Date of Incident: May 31, 2025
Location: Inside a Line 5 subway train between Yeouinaru and Mapo Stations.
Details: Won poured gasoline and started a fire on the train, injuring six passengers and endangering around 160 others.
Motive: He reportedly acted out of despair and anger over an unfavorable outcome in his divorce lawsuit, intending initially to end his own life.
🔹 Court Decision
Sentence: 12 years in prison
Additional orders: 3 years of probation with conditions — prohibition on possessing flammable substances and mandatory participation in supervision programs.
Rejected request: The prosecution’s demand for electronic monitoring was denied.
🔹 Court’s Reasoning
The judge noted that:
The crime was extremely serious and reckless, undermining public trust in the safety of public transportation.
Little restitution was made to victims.
However, the court considered as mitigating factors that:
Won did not have clear intent to kill, and
He had no prior record of similar crimes.
The prosecution had sought a 20-year prison sentence during the trial’s closing arguments in September 2025.
Article: https://www.lawtimes.co.kr/Case-curation/212211
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