Pastor rubbed medicated drops on child's eyes, stuffed tissue in mouth before 11-year-old died from abuse

A pastor who abused an 11-year-old boy at a church in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province, rubbed medicated drops on the child's eyes and stuffed tissue into his mouth, prosecutors revealed Monday as the case went to trial.

The first hearing in the child abuse homicide case was held Monday before the first criminal division of Daejeon District Court's Cheonan branch, presided over by Chief Judge Jo Yeong-jin. The defendants are Pastor A, 63, and C, 55, the maternal grandmother of the victim, identified only as B.

A and C are charged with chaining B to a bed at a Cheonan church for approximately 38 hours — from around 9:34 p.m. on Aug. 3 to around 9:07 p.m. on Aug. 5 — and leaving him unattended despite signs of high fever and severe exhaustion, resulting in his death.

In the indictment, prosecutors named not only A and C but also D, A's adopted son and a church member, as a co-conspirator in chaining B.

D had been on police radar since the early stages of the investigation but has not yet been indicted.

"The investigation into D, the adopted son, is still ongoing and has not yet reached the referral stage," a police official said, adding that authorities continue to probe whether other church residents or associates took part in additional crimes.

Prosecutors believe A and C had been carrying out or knowingly ignoring the abuse of B since December 2021.

Prosecutors determined that the most severe abuse began after B left the church on July 26 and July 29 and disclosed the mistreatment to people outside.

Enraged, the defendants beat B's palms and soles dozens of times with a wooden stick. C was also found to have slapped B's face four to five times around Aug. 2, days before his death.

After learning that B had asked a police officer to send him to an orphanage, A flew into a rage, rubbed medicated drops on the boy's eyes and mouth, stuffed tissue into his mouth and slapped his face, prosecutors said.

The defendants ultimately chained B to a bed, ostensibly to make it easier to keep watch over him.

While B was restrained, they also put adult diapers on him.

Prosecutors believe B's condition deteriorated and he died after being chained for an extended period without proper medical treatment, having developed a fever of 41.5 degrees Celsius and severe exhaustion.

The pastor acknowledged the abuse charges but said he would "wait for the autopsy results before deciding" whether he had foreseen that the child could die.