Christian Camp Killer Sentenced to Life

A man who killed a woman in a shooting rampage at a Catholic retreat was sentenced to life today.

John Suchan Chong, 71, was sentenced to a total of 136 years to life on four counts of premeditated murder and attempted murder.

Chong killed Chunyi “Scholastica” Yun, 58, in her home on the Kkottongnae Center, a camp ran by nuns on Highway 79, on April 7, 2009. The camp houses needy people and caters to the Catholic Korean community.

Chong also shot her husband, Jonpil “Benedict” Yun, though he survived and testified during the trial.

The killer also attacked another couple, Joseph and Juliana Kim, 69 and 65, though they fought Chong and managed to escape serious injury.

Though he only killed one person, he destroyed the lives of many more, Judge Mark A. Mandio said.

“Their lives have been turned totally upside-down,” he said. When Jonpil Yun testified, he broke down and wept several times, Mandio recalled. “It came out of the blue. He’s devastated. I saw his child back there,” he said, looking at the audience area of the court. “She’s devastated.”

The Kims fled the country since the attack, Mandio said. “It’s hard to imagine somebody coming into your home, stomping on your head and shooting at you.”

During the trial, victims testified Chong barged into the Kims’ home and attacked the woman. He was beating her on the ground when her husband came in and fought the killer off.

The victims declined to come to the hearing and talk to the judge, which is customary before sentencing. “In their words, it’s just too difficult to express how they feel,” prosecutor Brandon Smith said.

By the end of the trial, Chong had yet to come to terms with what he did, Smith said. “In spite of Mr. Chong’s age, he apparently has not learned to take responsibility for his actions,” he said. “He blames the Yuns for what happened in their house. He blames the Kims for what happened in their house. He blames the officers for manipulating the evidence.”

Chong denied that during the hearing and said he feels deep guilt for the murder. “It really breaks my heart to face the fact that I killed another person, and I pray and trust God will know that fact,” he said through a Korean interpreter.

The defense ask the judge to go easy on Chong for the sake of his age, his frail shape and his mental instability. “He’s 71 years old, he’s in bad mental and physical health,” said Renee Rupp, the killer’s attorney. He attempted suicide twice in his life, she added.

He showed remorse to her in private, Rupp said. “He moved to the United States to provide a better life for his family,” she said. “It hurts his heart terribly that he did this to his church and everyone.”

Chong deserved every year of the sentence, the judge said. “This is about as bad as it gets. If it weren’t for some intervening facts, there would be four people dead,” he said.

As the judge read off the sentence, Chong wept quietly.

The killer shot the victims to get back at them for treating him disrespectfully and scheming to get him thrown out of the camp, attorneys said during the trial.

The day of the shooting, Chong knocked on the Yuns’ door, was let in and sat down. He then told pulled out a handgun and told them they should repent, because he was about to shoot them to death.

The couple prayed together as Chong lifted his gun and pointed it at Chunyi Yun. Her husband panicked, yelled and waved his arms, so the killer shot him in the chest, knocking him down. Chong then turned the gun on the woman and shot her in the head. She died on the floor of her home, witnesses testified.

Chong then went to the home of the Kims. The husband was in his bedroom reading the Bible when he heard a clamor in the living room. When he came out, he found Chong stomping on his wife’s head.

He attacked Chong, wrestling the gun from his hands and beat him into submission with a dumbbell.

Investigators found Chong with pockets full of extra ammunition, which hinted that Chong meant to fire the gun many times, jurors said after the trial.

To read what the jurors said, click here.

To read about Chong’s mental state, click here.

To read about his motivations, click here. 

Editor's note: An earlier version of this story stated Chong was sentenced to 160 years to life. The court released a corrected sentence of 90 years to life after the first version of this story was published.