Man sentenced to life for fatally stabbing three people at pizza store in Seoul

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Published: 05 Feb. 2026, 15:24

A mug shot of Kim Dong-won, a 41-year-old man who murdered three people at a pizza store in southwestern Seoul, is seen in this photo provided by the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency on Sept. 16, 2026. [YONHAP]

A Seoul court on Thursday sentenced a 41-year-old man to life imprisonment for fatally stabbing three people at a pizza store in the capital last year.

The Seoul Central District Court handed down the sentence to Kim Dong-won for murdering the victims at the establishment in Gwanak District, southern Seoul, last September, following a dispute over the store's repairs.

Kim, who operated the franchise store, killed a pizza franchise company employee, an interior contractor and the contractor's daughter after learning that he would have to pay for repairs to the store.

"The victims must have felt considerable pain and fear at the time of the crime, and the defendant has not been forgiven by their families," the court said. "The result of this case is very grave, and there is a need to hold the defendant strictly accountable."

The prosecution had earlier demanded the death penalty for Kim.

Yonhap