STALKING CRIMES AND RELATED MEASURES

[Anchor Lead]

A man has been arrested for stalking his ex-girlfriend by attaching a location tracking device on her car. A new anti-stalking law took effect last month enabling heavier punishment and related reports have since sharply increased.

[Pkg]

Under the darkness of night, a man approaches a white car and crawls under it. He wears a thick protective suit and gloves to hide his identity. He reappears a while after and attaches something on the car parked in an alleyway and disappears. He has put a tracking device on his ex-girlfriend’s car. Police have arrested the 57-year-old on charges of violating the anti-stalking law. He allegedly installed such devices repeatedly on six vehicles and bicycles owned by his ex-girlfriend and her acquaintances. The man is also accused of threatening to crash his car into a cafe the victim was visiting.

[Soundbite] Kim Min-woo(Incheon Metropolitan Police Agency) : "Repeated, continued acts of following, observing and placing objects near victim’s residence all constitute as stalking punishable by law."

The stalking punishment law came into effect on October 21 and 1,330 reports have since been filed as of Monday. The figure amounts to an average 111 reports per day. That's 4.6 times more than the average 24 daily reports received before the law took effect.

[Soundbite] Kim Do-yeon(Korea Dating Violence Institute) : "Reports have increased due to a change in perception that stalking can lead to more serious crimes. What matters most is providing a safety net for the victims."

Experts say practical measures to protect victims is as important as the stern punishments against perpetrators.