South Korean Supreme Court reinstates murder charges in shamanic ritual death

South Korea’s Supreme Court has overturned a lower court ruling regarding a shamanic ritual that resulted in the death of a woman in her 30s. The court ruled that the 81-year-old shaman, identified as Shim, and her accomplices should be charged with murder rather than injury resulting in death.

In September 2024, in Bupyeong, Incheon, Shim and six accomplices—including her children—bound the victim to a metal structure and applied heat from burning charcoal for approximately three hours. The group claimed the ritual was necessary to “remove an evil spirit” preventing the victim from leaving her job. The victim died two days later from multiple organ failure caused by severe burns.

While a second instance court had reduced the charges by arguing that the defendants lacked the specific intent to kill due to their belief in the ritual's efficacy, the Supreme Court disagreed. The justices stated that the ritual was “excessively cruel and dangerous” and that even if the defendants believed in the spiritual outcome, they must have recognized the realistic risk of death. The court found that the defendants’ failure to provide aid after the victim lost consciousness also constituted aiding and abetting murder through omission. The case has been remanded to the Seoul High Court for retrial.