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| A 12-year-old boy is bound to a chair with his eyes covered in this video footage disclosed on March 18. Screenshot from SBS YouTube account |
By Kim Se-jeong
Last month, the death of a 12-year-old boy in Incheon as a result of abuse by his stepmother and father shocked Korean society. Last weekend, a local TV station disclosed details of the abuse, adding to people's shock and worries.
In video footage released by SBS, a local TV station, the boy is seen bound to a chair in a room. He can't see either because his eyes are covered with what appears to be a pair of pants. According to SBS, the video was recorded two days before he became unconscious after he was restrained that way for 16 hours.
SBS said the stepmother stayed in another room, monitoring him via a camera and shouting at him through a speaker from time to time. Also he was pushed to get up early in the morning to copy parts of the Bible as part of the abuse.
Other footage showed him sitting in a chair at a convenience store, showing clear signs of starvation and mental trauma.
In early March, the stepmother and the father were indicted on charges of child abuse resulting in homicide and child abuse, respectively.
The boy was found unconscious at his Incheon home in January and died a month later in a hospital. He was found to have bruises all over his body when he arrived in the hospital, which led to a police investigation.
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| The boy is seen on the floor still bound to the chair. Screenshot from SBS YouTube account |
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| The boy sits in a convenience store in Incheon, showing signs of starvation and mental trauma. Screenshot from SBS YouTube account |
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