FEDERAL WAY, Wash. — Warning: This story contains depictions of child abuse.
A Federal Way father has been charged with assault in connection with the alleged beating death of his 5-year-old daughter.
At his first appearance, the Court found probable cause for second-degree murder. However, on June 3, the father was charged with four counts of assault and one count of interfering with domestic violence reporting.
According to a spokesperson from the King County Prosecutor’s Office, “These are the charges that prosecutors believe they can prove now. The police investigation is ongoing. Additional charges may be filed based on what is available going forward in that ongoing police investigation.”
On May 29, officers responded to a call about a child who was unresponsive at the Glen Park Apartments on Campus Drive.
When officers arrived, they found the person who called, the child’s father, 29-year-old Woo Jin Hahn, performing CPR on the child.
An officer noticed that the girl had “several large bruises with lacerations on SJH’s forehead” and what looked like old bruises on her right armpit area.
Efforts were continued to save her life, but she later succumbed to her injuries at Harborview Medical Center.
At the scene, Hahn allegedly told officers that he had caused the bruises on her face from disciplining her as early as the night before, according to court documents.
He allegedly hit her with a metal cup, and would typically discipline her by hitting her with a cup or stick, court documents said.
Hahn’s girlfriend, who lived in the apartment, told officers that she had witnessed him hitting the child in the past and had previously pushed her against a wall and punched her in the stomach.
According to court documents, he said he did this as a punishment because the child defecated outside of her toilet.
He allegedly told police that he “snapped” when the child had food poisoning and knocked over her portable child potty, accidentally knocking it over and spilling its contents, according to court documents.
“Hahn added that he backed up the potty toilet to the bathroom door and tied SJH’s hands above her head using a rope that led from her hands to a pull-up bar that was on the door so she couldn’t reach down and pick up her own fecal matter. Hahn also said [her] feet were tied to the toilet using a towel. Hahn said SJH remained in this position on the toilet tied up for upwards of three hours,” court documents detailed.
According to court documents, Hahn stated that he “was the reason [child] was in the condition that she was in and she probably ‘succumbed to the injuries’ that he caused.”
Hahn was arrested and is facing one count of second-degree domestic violence assault of a child, two counts of third-degree assault of a child, one count of fourth-degree domestic violence assault, and one count of interfering with domestic violence reporting.
His next court appearance is on June 17.
Bail has been set at $5 million.
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