Karaoke bar owner jailed 2 years for leaving collapsed customer to die

A karaoke bar owner who left a collapsed customer unattended for 12 hours in the middle of winter, leading to the customer's death, has been sentenced to prison.

The Changwon District Court's Fourth Criminal Division, presided over by Chief Judge Oh Dae-seok, sentenced the owner, identified only as A, a man in his 60s, to two years in prison on charges of abandonment causing death, Yonhap reported Monday.

A was indicted on charges of abandonment causing death after leaving a man in his 60s, identified as B, collapsed at the entrance of his karaoke bar on the afternoon of Dec. 30, 2024.

B was found collapsed between the entrance and a staircase at around 10:24 p.m. and was left there for about 12 hours until the following morning.

Despite discovering B on the ground, A took no action — neither calling police nor summoning an ambulance. He finally reported the situation to police at around 10:32 a.m. the next morning. B was transported to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead from head injuries and other trauma.

A argued that he had not abandoned B, and that even if abandonment were established, no causal link to the death could be proven. The court rejected both claims.

The court said A had a duty of care toward B under the Framework Act on Consumers as well as under the terms of their contractual relationship. "It is reasonable to conclude that the defendant abandoned the victim, as he was aware the victim needed rescue yet left him unattended," the court said.

In explaining the sentence, the court said it took into account that A did not appear to have acted with clear criminal intent, that his abandonment was not the sole and direct cause of death, and that he had no prior criminal record.