▲ A 62-year-old man (C) is taken from a police station in Incheon, west of Seoul, to prosecutors, in this file photo taken July 30, 2025, after being arrested on charges of killing his 33-year-old son with a homemade gun during his own birthday party at the son's home on July 20. (Yonhap)

court-shooting murder

Man sentenced to life for killing son with homemade gun at birthday party

INCHEON, Feb. 6 (Yonhap) -- A court on Friday sentenced a 63-year-old man to life in prison for shooting and killing his son with a homemade gun during the defendant's own birthday party last year.

The Incheon District Court also ordered the man to wear an ankle monitor for 20 years after finding him guilty of murder, attempted murder and violating the firearms control act.

Prosecutors had sought the death penalty for the defendant for murdering his 33-year-old son who had prepared the party at an apartment in Incheon, west of Seoul, on July 20.

The man was also accused of attempting to shoot and kill his daughter-in-law, two grandchildren and an acquaintance of the daughter-in-law at the scene.

"Murder is a grave crime and because life cannot be restored in any way once taken, it carries a very heavy responsibility," the court said.

The case drew widespread attention in a country where private ownership of firearms is tightly restricted.

Following the shooting, investigators discovered multiple flammable materials and an ignition device at the shooter's home in northern Seoul that had been set to go off the next day.

The investigation found the man had planned the crime since August 2024 after he was cut off from financial support from his family. Investigators determined the man had fallen into a delusion that his former wife and son had planned to isolate him.

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