KTLA reports that a man has been convicted for raping and murdering an 81-year-old Asian woman.
In a San Fransisco court, Jonathan Jackson was convicted for the kidnapping, rape and murder of Sun Yi Kwon in 2012.
Kwon was living alone in El Cerrito and used to go for walks on a daily basis. On the morning of 28 January 2012, Jackson, 36, dragged the elderly woman into a secluded area, raped and beat her. The victim died six months later.
Jackson, whose semen was found at the crime scene, testified that he was high and drunk on LSD at the time. He claimed he found Kwon’s partially nude, lifeless body, and masturbated over her.
Police linked Jackson’s DNA to the crime after he was arrested for driving a stolen car in 2016.
The prosecution claimed Jackson had spent the night before the crime drinking at a cousin’s home in Richmond and left “in rage” due to a physical altercation with his cousin. It was alleged that Jackson found Kwon and took his anger out on her.
Kwon was confined to a wheelchair after the attack before dying shortly after her 82nd birthday.
12 jurors agreed that Jackson was guilty of first-degree murder. He will be sentenced to life without the possibility of parole.
The defendant cried out “oh, my God. They got it wrong!” as the guilty verdict was read. Jackson’s mother also began crying.
“This day has been a long time coming; justice was finally served in this case thanks to the hard work of the Richmond Police Department, the patience of the victim’s family and the thoughtfulness of the jury who listened to all of the evidence,” Contra Costa County Deputy District Attorney Aron DeFerrari said in an email after the verdict.
“In the end, the justice system is about shining a light on the truth; today that happened, and that is a good thing.”
