Jonathan Kang Lee, a 26-year-old Korean American and former U.S. Army soldier, was sentenced to life in prison for killing a taxi driver while deserting the base. Lee had previously been demoted from specialist to private.
Life sentence issued with dishonorable discharge
According to local outlet KOMO News on April 24, a military court sentenced Lee on April 23 to life in prison with the possibility of parole. He was also given a dishonorable discharge.
Killing occurred during 2023 desertion from base
Lee deserted from base on January 14, 2023, two days before his scheduled sentencing for separate child sex crime charges. After his car broke down, he called a taxi. During the ride, he got into an argument with the driver over the fare and fatally stabbed driver Nicholas Hokema multiple times.
Lee then fled but was later caught by Army CID investigators at a private residence in Redmond, Washington.
Pleaded guilty to all charges
During trial, Lee pleaded guilty to all charges, including first-degree murder, desertion, resisting arrest, and disobeying orders. Hokema’s fiancée, Nicole Sharkody, said, “This doesn’t bring him Hokema back, but I feel some justice was served.”
Separate 64-year sentence for child sex crimes
In a separate case, Lee had already been sentenced to 64 years in prison for child sex crime charges. He is currently incarcerated at Fort Leavenworth prison in Kansas and will not be eligible for parole until after 2045.
BY HANKIL KANG [kang.hankil@koreadaily.com]
