[Trigger Warning] Woman narrowly escapes man following her home + man is charged for attempted rape

[juhli.livejournal.com]

A couple of days ago, CCTV-footage was released that showed a young woman being followed home by a man and attempting to break into her apartment.

tw: rape
korean women say they feel anxious every moment because they don't know when or where they will be the target of a crime. recently a cctv footage of a man following a young woman and attempting to break into her house was posted on twitter. pic.twitter.com/LJV0viiAuZ

— 눈부셔라! (@joyfuljoyfuI) May 30, 2019

police says the man’s (mr. cho) threats to bust open her door lasted for more than 10 minutes.

there were also acts of intimidations contained in a CCTV footage that wasn’t released on social media. https://t.co/fsI1AHB6qZ

— 눈부셔라! (@joyfuljoyfuI) 1. Juni 2019

Police made the decision for a trespassing charge citing the principle of presumption of innocence. But the controversy has intensified as additional CCTV footage of the man following her home through the alley has been released. With concerns of a "weaker punishment" more likely for 'A', more and more people agreed for a petition to be written and on the same day, a petition titled "Strongly punish the attempted Shillim-dong rapist " was posted on the Blue House website.

As the incident became public, the CCTV video titled "Shillim-dong rapist video" was uploaded on social media. The Gwanak Police Station confirmed the man's movements on the footage and started an investigation into the case. The man, 'A' aware that the police were investigating expressed his intention to turn himself in through a 112 call to police and was later arrested at 7:15am.

Later that day, Channel 'A' released additional CCTV footage that shows the man chasing the woman home through the alley. During the first round of police questioning that ended around 5pm, the man, 'A', said he drank until dawn and does not remember his movements. Police believe the suspect happened to see the victim that day and just followed her. He didn't specifically target her or wait for her.

After conducting a reinforced investigation into the CCTV footage as well as the victim's statements, police have concluded that "there was a threat at the time of the attempted rape in Shillim-dong" and have deemed it appropriate to charge the 30 year old "Cho" for attempted rape.

The Gwanak Police Station in Seoul explained on the 1st that according to the CCTV footage reviewed, Cho tried to open the victim's door handle and urged the victim to open the door for more than 10 minutes. When the victim didn't open the door, Cho then tried to open the door by trying to guess the door lock password.

The police official said, "We reviewed the law based on the facts and requested an arrest warrant in consideration of the gravity and danger of the crime. The court recognized this and issued the warrant."

Judge Shin Jong-yeol of the Seoul Central District Court said, "The risk of action is high. We recognized that there is also the risk of flight so we approved the arrest warrant."

Cho was arrested on May 31st on charges of violating the Special Act on the Punishment of Sexual Crimes. According to Korea law on Sexual crimes, Cho is facing a minimum of 3 years of prison.


source: joyfuljoyfuI, hankookilbo, dailynaver 1 2, naver 2

If that door had closed a few seconds later... Absolutely terrifying.

Comments

[lizanka23.livejournal.com]

that does look really scary. is it that common for women to be worried that a man will follow them home in korea? that tweet makes it seem like women are always anxious about this happening

[nekokonneko.livejournal.com]

Wasn't earlier this week some idol told a girl watching his livestream to turn up the volume and he'd pretend to be her boyfriend after she messaged him saying a man was following her?

[lizanka23.livejournal.com]

ohh that's true. i didn't even make the connection. that does make these headlines even more relevant to real life. what would've happened if she didn't have that idol guy pretending to be her boyfriend? :( she might've been a headline as well

[ashdevilrun23.livejournal.com]

he was trying so hard to get that door open it makes me sick to see how desperate he seemed

[oh-folk.livejournal.com]

Holy shit. I'm so happy she was able to get away from him in time. I've been followed home before and it's horrifying.

[sra-interesante.livejournal.com]

that's terrifying, korea isnt safe for women when it comes to those stuff
i live a very independent life in my hometown i hate the idea of having to be extra careful because guys are pervs

reminds me a youtuber that recently shared a video about this cable guy that touched her while fixing her tv

[shalottlady07.livejournal.com]

If I’m having workers/maintenance people, I always try to have one of my parents there or if I can’t I call/text them while the person is there. It’s so sad that we as women have to do this in our own homes because the fear is so engrained.

[dongsaengkiller.livejournal.com]

Fucking trespassing??? He would have paid peanuts for a fine and gone on to terrorize more women. This is why we have to hold feet to the fire, waiting for justice and hoping for the best is now officially ridiculous

[fadeintoyou.livejournal.com]

holy crap that is scary. If she was half a second slower in closing her door, he would’ve gotten in.

[lindeyyy.livejournal.com]

this is just my personal experience but i do feel safer walking around at night in seoul than in london/my hometown in the uk. i lived in seoul for a year as an exchange student and number of time i was walking home from uni well past midnight and never had anyone bother me. i've gone back a number of times as well and still no issue although random men sometimes try to talk to me during the day? still, never really felt threatened and usually just say 'i have to go' and go my way. in the uk on the other hand i've had number of guys shout things at me and try to approach me while on my way home in the evening/at night, and even some woman in my neighbourhood had a man follow her and literally try drag her out of her own house in broad daylight.

like i said though, this is my personal experience. some of my friends have had bad experiences in seoul - one was followed and one was bothered a lot while she was just walking and doing her thing. all of this though is what we have experienced as foreign girls, things could be completely different for korean girls.

[shalottlady07.livejournal.com]

I’m in the same boat as you. Never had issues in Seoul, maybe because I’m a foreigner. In the UK/US, I’ve given fake names and walked into stores or in opposite directions because I’ve had people not leave me alone.

[jasmineakaiumi.livejournal.com]

While I did feel safer walking around in Seoul at night (lived there 7yrs), I had more than one occasion of a man following me home, and several incidents of sexual harassment/assault when walking home from work/waiting for the bus/taking the subway etc. so it definitely isn't uncommon imo

Oddly enough, when talking about it with several friends, all of my tall foreign friends never had anything happen to them, while all of my shorter friends (I'm on the shorter side) said, like me, that they had at least one incident every other week. Twas an interesting observation!

[daynr.livejournal.com]

I agree. Obviously, where exactly you are matters as the U.S. is so big, but I've lived in several major US (and abroad) cities. I'm forever grateful that I've been ok, and I am not paranoid. I am often tipsy or worse. It could very well be luck, as well as the fact that even in major cities I've been lucky enough to live in pretty secure areas. But sometimes it seems like the assumed male entitlement to female bodies is stronger in other countries. I mean, men talk to me on the streets way too often (shut the hell up!) but the actual following is rare. And I mostly walk or use public transportation.

hard to know about abroad, especially in places like East Asia where I am clearly not a native.

[modestgoddess79.livejournal.com]

Street harassment is common but being followed home has never happened to me before.

[kimbafierce.livejournal.com]

"He was drunk and did not remember his movement".When will "I was drunk" stop being a valid excuse in Korean law?
If you can't handle your drink, bitch, stop drinking.

[modestgoddess79.livejournal.com]

He’s lying, he’s way too steady for being drunk enough to not be in control of his actions. Just trying to get leniency.

[kimbafierce.livejournal.com]

Obviously he's lying, but even if he really were it should never be an excuse. And the fact that the police were ready to bury this until it got viral tell me they don't even care to investigate his claim.

[kimbafierce.livejournal.com]

... I hope someone butcher him in prison.

[lightframes.livejournal.com]

If you can't handle your drink, bitch, stop drinking.

For real

[the3rdjester.livejournal.com]

This
Enough with the fucking excuses. Just like when they use the "I have a mental illness" card, even though it's a lie, which is truly infuriating, because the people who actually suffer from mental illnesses get stigmatized (even more) when this issue is used so often as a criminal's excuse..

[daynr.livejournal.com]

chilling. charge him for all you can, and try to meet the burdens.

[minho-lover.livejournal.com]

aah so scary! Esp when he tried to reach for the once she shut it! the thought of if he was able to enter is terrifying!! hope the woman is okay

[shalottlady07.livejournal.com]

Thank goodness for auto-locking doors being more common there. This is terrifying, especially him continuing to trying to get in and trying to guess her password.

[modestgoddess79.livejournal.com]

The way he waited until she opened and stepped through the door before coming out of hiding was obviously premeditated. He’s claiming he was drunk to try and hide the premeditation. I hope he gets the longest sentence possible.

[weneedmedicine.livejournal.com]

Scumbag deserves to choke.

[jackieee94.livejournal.com]

Omg :( if this had happened to me it would take a while before I felt comfortable leaving my house again. I’m glad she’s ok. Fuck men.

[jackieee94.livejournal.com]

You’re right. moving would def be an option after this.

[dropthecrates.livejournal.com]

this is so chilling and my worst nightmare, i hope she's able to move asap.

[the3rdjester.livejournal.com]

Disgusting pos

[nekobot.livejournal.com]

This was scary enough when I saw it the first time but I didn't realise until now that it happened in broad daylight! I'm confused by the story behind this because he went in after her yet he's waiting for her around the corner when she reaches her apartment, wouldn't that mean he knows where she lives and therefore had to have planned this?

[apori.livejournal.com]

I genuinely hope this piece of shit drops dead. I know he's one among millions, but still we have to start somewhere. Fucking scum.

I've been there myself, can testify this shit happens across countries. I'm Asian and have lived there and in Europe and Australia, and it's literally happened in multiple countries and parts of the world to me alone whether I look "native" or not. Can't imagine what the numbers are like.

The worst part is when you know you're being followed and you have to pretend like you don't know it and you feel panic and anxiety and just want to bolt but can't because you worry that will set them off even more and likely out run you.

[love-keiko.livejournal.com]

that was CLOSE. her door closed JUST in time, that's wild scary.

[xoxkenzxox.livejournal.com]

That is so scary. In broad daylight too.

[mallmouse.livejournal.com]

The world should FINALLY start having stricter laws for these monsters. 3 years in prison? That's fucking nothing. Cut his dick off. I'm not even kidding. 'Cho'? He's on CAMERA, the evidence is all there. Release his name, humiliate him, and it's still NOTHING compared to what he was about to do.

Only 3 years in prison is still rape culture.