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SEOUL, June 17 (UPI) -- The South Korean assailant who slashed a U.S. ambassador in the face with a knife stood trial for the first time since the attack. Kim Ki-jong attacked U.S. Ambassador to Seoul Mark Lippert on March 5 with a ten-inch knife that required the U.S. envoy to undergo two surgeries and 80 face stitches, the Korea Herald reported.
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Preliminary hearings on Wednesday, however, led to a tense altercation between Lee Jeong-bin, a legal expert providing evidence for the prosecution, and the defendant's legal counsel, South Korean television network SBS reported.
Lee said at the Wednesday trial Kim harbored a "very strong intention" when he stabbed Lippert in the face.
"When Kim stabbed near the neck, he could have easily slashed a carotid artery located one to two centimeters away from the wound, which would have been fatal," Lee said in translation.
Yonhap reported Kim's lawyer contested the prosecution's claim, and said if the defendant really wanted to fatally stab the ambassador, the wound would have not ended up on Lippert's cheek.
An ensuing argument between the two sides slowed the pace of the trial, according to South Korea media. Eventually, Lee said that he "didn't know" after several rounds of interrogations.
The 55-year-old assailant had arrived in a wheelchair, wearing a facemask that has become a common sight after the spread of the MERS virus in South Korea.
At one point in the trial, Kim's counsel conducted a reenactment of the attack, and asked Kim to hold a copy of the knife he once used to attack the U.S. ambassador.
The scene unsettled many on-site observers, as it triggered memories of the surprise assault on a U.S. envoy who is popular in South Korea for his openness and approachability.
South Korean President Park Geun-hye had condemned the attack and said the incident symbolized an attack on the South Korea-U.S. alliance, which can "never be tolerated."
Park had experienced a similar knife assault in 2006.
