Two Sentenced to 8 Months Imprisonment and Fines for Filming 'Apartment Sexual Activity' by Flying Drone at Midnight

Aerial photography drone. The photo is unrelated to specific expressions in the article. / Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Juhyung] Two men who flew a drone to the windows of a high-rise apartment to film residents' sexual activities were sentenced to prison and fined, respectively.

The Busan District Court East Branch Criminal Division 4 (Presiding Judge Lee Deokhwan) announced on the 2nd that A (42), who was indicted for violating the Special Act on the Punishment of Sexual Violence Crimes, was sentenced to 8 months in prison. The court also sentenced accomplice B (30) to a fine of 10 million won. Additionally, both were ordered to complete 40 hours of sexual violence treatment programs.

The court stated, "Using drones, which are becoming commonplace, to invade the privacy of ordinary people and cause anxiety is highly condemnable," and added, "If the videos filmed by the drone had been leaked externally, it could have caused serious social problems."

They are accused of flying a drone from midnight to 3 a.m. on September 19 last year at a high-rise apartment complex in Suyeong-gu, Busan, approaching the windows and illegally filming the private lives of residents inside.

The videos they filmed included scenes of residents' sexual activities.

However, the drone malfunctioned and fell onto a nearby terrace of the apartment, and a resident who witnessed this reported it to the police, revealing their crime.

The police who arrived at the scene confirmed the illegally filmed videos on the drone and, after tracking the drone owner, arrested A and B, who colluded in the crime.