A woman in her 20s under stalking protection was stabbed to death in broad daylight by a man in his 40s in Namyangju, Gyeonggi Province. The assailant was wearing an electronic ankle monitor under Ministry of Justice supervision. The victim pressed a police-issued smartwatch to call 112 in the emergency, but the murder was not prevented. Critics point to exposed limitations in stalking crime protection measures.
According to the Ministry of Justice and police on the 15th, the victim, identified as B, was stabbed to death by A on a street in Onam-eup, Namyangju at approximately 8:58 a.m. the previous day. A fled immediately after the attack and was found about an hour later at around 10:10 a.m. on a national highway in Yangseo-myeon, Yangpyeong County, Gyeonggi Province. However, A had consumed alcohol and drugs during his escape and lost consciousness. He was transported to a hospital and remains unconscious, hampering the investigation. Police reportedly plan to seek an arrest warrant.
B sensed the threat before the attack and pressed her police-issued smartwatch at 8:56 a.m. to report to 112, but was ultimately killed. B, who had been in a common-law marriage with A, had filed multiple reports of domestic violence and stalking. She recently reported to police that A had installed a GPS tracking device on her vehicle. The court had issued provisional measures No. 1, 2, and 3 under the Anti-Stalking Act, prohibiting A from approaching her.
The Gyeonggi Northern Police Agency had designated Guri Police Station as the responsible agency and ordered a review in February for provisional measure No. 4—detention in jail or prison with an arrest warrant request—but no action was taken.
Critics say the government's stalking crime prevention and protection measures are proving completely ineffective. Even when victims press smartwatch alerts in emergencies, police response takes time. A's ankle monitor was attached for a separate case, failing to prevent him from approaching the victim. The ankle monitor is managed by the Ministry of Justice's probation office while the victim's smartwatch is managed by police—the two devices are not linked, compounding the problem.
The Ministry of Justice, responsible for preventing stalking crimes, appears reluctant to develop countermeasures. Following this incident, the ministry only stated it would "review pursuing legislative amendments to enable GPS tracking device attachment with just an approach prohibition order in coordination with relevant agencies."