Jeonju·Busan Women Serial Killer Choi Sin-jong
Random Chatting Apps Raise Concerns of Leading to Serious Crimes Like Sexual Offenses and Murder
Experts Emphasize "Importance of Chat App System Management"
The identity of Choi Sin-jong (31), the suspect arrested on charges of murdering two women who went missing in Jeonju, Jeollabuk-do, and Busan, was revealed on the 20th. [Image source=Yonhap News]
[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Midam] Choi Sinjong (31), a suspect arrested on charges of murdering two women who went missing in Jeonju, Jeonbuk, and Busan, is reported to have used random chat apps to select his victims and commit the crimes, raising awareness about the risks of using chat apps.
Crimes through random chat apps have occurred before. In the past, a man brutally murdered a woman he met through a chat app by strangling her and taping her mouth with blue tape, causing public outrage.
Moreover, chat apps have been used in sex trafficking crimes targeting teenagers, causing various social problems. Experts emphasize that chat apps themselves should be able to block criminal attempts.
According to the Jeonbuk Provincial Police Agency, Choi was arrested on charges of murdering two women in Jeonju and Busan on the 14th and 18th of last month and disposing of their bodies in a river and an orchard.
During the process of killing the missing women, he reportedly robbed them of valuables and sexually assaulted them. All the victims were last seen getting into Choi's car, after which contact was lost and their families filed missing person reports.
A random chat app. The photo is unrelated to specific expressions in the article. [Image source=Yonhap News]
His tool for crime was a random chat app. A police official told Asia Economy, "We are currently identifying the personal information of women Choi Sinjong contacted through the random chat app." He added, "We are investigating all possibilities, including loss of contact due to simple phone number changes and the possibility of additional crimes."
Sex crimes through chat apps are frequent. According to police statistics, from 2016 to 2018, there were 3,665 cases of prostitution-related incidents on chat apps, with a total of 11,414 people arrested. Among them, 452 cases involved minors, with 863 arrests.
The main route through which teenagers encounter prostitution is also chat apps. The recent Telegram "Nth Room case," which caused public outrage, was found to have lured victimized teenagers through random chat apps.
According to the 2018 analysis of child and adolescent sex crime trends published by the Korea Institute of Criminology and Justice, 91.4% (266 cases) of sex purchases and 89.5% (119 cases) of prostitution mediation were conducted via chat apps and social media.
At around 3 p.m. on the 12th, a woman's body was found in an orchard in Sang-gwan-myeon, Wanju-gun, Jeonbuk, and the police are verifying her identity. [Image source=Yonhap News]
As a result, the government designated random chat apps as harmful media for youth, citing concerns that these apps could encourage unhealthy encounters such as prostitution among teenagers.
Not only teenagers but also adults can be exposed to crimes through chat apps. In March last year, a man in his 20s was arrested for threatening women he met through chat apps by saying he would film and distribute videos of sexual acts.
He is also accused of approaching 137 women in their 20s whom he met through chat apps from September 2015 to April 2018, pretending to date them, borrowing money, and then disappearing, extorting a total of 90 million won.
There have also been cases of women being murdered, similar to the Choi Sinjong case. In June last year, a man in his 30s killed a woman in her 20s he met through a chat app at a motel in Osan, Gyeonggi Province. In 2018, a man in his 20s was indicted for strangling and taping the mouth of a woman in her 50s he met through a chat app.
Despite the social problems caused by random chat apps, there is no legal basis under current law to eliminate these apps or punish their operators. It is difficult to consider chat apps themselves harmful since they are designed for free conversations among people sharing common interests.
Experts suggest that a systematic management system for chat apps should be established.
Professor Gong Jeongsik of the Department of Criminal Psychology at Kyonggi University pointed out, "The problem with chat apps arises because users engage in secret conversations or seduce others through them. In other words, users become involved in criminal scenes. This is a management issue."
He added, "It is important to properly manage chat app systems to prevent victims. Strong punishments should be imposed if users violate rules by engaging in sexual conversations or other prohibited acts."
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