Man jailed 17 years for taxi driver's murder freed after court orders retrial

Bozorov Akmal, a 37-year-old Uzbek national sentenced to life in prison for the 2009 murder of a taxi driver in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province, was freed Thursday after about 17 years behind bars, following a court decision to grant a retrial and suspend his sentence.

Akmal walked out of Changwon Prison at around 6:35 p.m. and told reporters, "I have lived with this injustice until now, but at the same time I feel truly sorry for the pain this has caused the victim's family." He added, "I will speak truthfully throughout the remaining trial proceedings."

He also said he hoped to clear his name through the retrial and return home to his parents as soon as possible, adding that he was grateful to attorney Park Jun-young for his help.

Akmal was indicted on charges of robbery and murder after allegedly killing a taxi driver in his 50s and stealing valuables in Uichang-gu, Changwon, in March 2009. The Supreme Court upheld a life sentence the following year.

He had entered South Korea as a student and was detained in Changwon in July 2009 on suspicion of taxi robbery, before being identified as a suspect in the earlier murder.

Akmal subsequently filed for a retrial, which was rejected. In January last year, with the help of attorney Park Jun-young — a lawyer known for taking retrial cases — he filed a new retrial petition with the court.

The court found that police had misled Akmal with false information while inducing his confession and had violated his right to an interpreter.

Police had deceived Akmal by telling him his DNA had been found at the scene and that the victim was still alive. The court recognized these investigative irregularities as unlawful and ordered the retrial and suspension of his sentence Thursday.

Akmal's legal team plans to visit the victim's bereaved family to convey their respects before beginning full preparations for the retrial.