Judge Russell Canan sentenced Marlon Williams to 40 years in prison Thursday in connection with the 2010 shooting death of 37-year-old Minn Soo Kang.
“By all accounts an outstanding member of the community was killed over a car,” Canan said. “Mr. Williams you are responsible for that.”
Williams maintains that he is innocent of the charges against him.
“I give the real family my condolences. I can’t imagine the pain they suffered,” he said at sentencing Thursday. “But it’s a sad day for my family too, because an innocent man is going to jail.”
Kang was found laying on a curb in Southeast DC suffering from multiple gunshot wounds on Sept. 13, 2010 at about four a.m. His car had been stolen and was later found two miles away. Kang was transported to a local hospital where he died. Over a week later Williams, 34, was arrested and held on suspicion of felony murder in Kang’s death.
Williams’ first trial in the case was held in February, and resulted in a hung jury where eight of the twelve jurors were prepared to vote guilty on a felony murder charge; four were not.
Williams was retried in the case in July and found guilty of first-degree felony murder while armed and related robbery and weapons charges.
During trial, prosecutors argued that while Kang was parked, Williams approached Kang’s vehicle, opened the passenger side door and shot Kang several times. Williams then dragged Kang out of the car drove away with the vehicle, prosecutors said.
Kang’s car was found two miles away at the 5200 block of Ames Street Northeast. Williams’ fingerprints were found inside of the vehicle, and on the car’s hood. When police searched Williams’ home, they found a semiautomatic pistol under his bed that matched the bullets recovered inside the Cadillac.
Prosecutors argued Friday that the nature of the crime was extremely brutal and that Williams has had issues with drugs while on release for previous crimes. But Williams’ defense attorney, Betty Ballester, said that Williams has not accepted the jury’s verdict and will be filing an appeal in the case.
