Hidden Cameras Detected in Lodging Facilities, Motel Staff Bribed to Install in All Rooms
About 5,000 Illegal Filming Crimes Last Year...Subway Stations and Rooms Account for About 23%
Experts Say "Police and Local Governments Must Strengthen Crackdowns"
Recently, illegal filming crimes have been on the rise, with approximately 23% of these crimes occurring in subway stations and lodging facilities. [Image source=Yonhap News]
[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Seohyun] Recently, as illegal filming crimes within lodging facilities have occurred repeatedly, there are calls for strengthened punishment and prevention measures. Experts emphasize that more thorough crackdowns must be conducted to firmly instill the awareness that illegal filming crimes will inevitably be punished.
On the 30th of last month, a camera attached to a drawer was discovered at a motel in Chuncheon, Gangwon-do, following a suspicious report by a guest.
The person who installed the camera was the motel owner, and it was revealed that there were over 100 illegal filming videos. When the police arrived at the scene immediately after the suspicious report and inspected the camera, the motel owner was caught fleeing hastily as the cable connecting the hidden camera to the outside was cut. According to the police, motel owner A had been secretly filming since June by installing hidden cameras.
Earlier, in mid-last month, four members of a group were arrested at a motel in Yangpyeong, Gyeonggi-do for bribing employees to illegally install hidden cameras in about 20 rooms throughout the motel.
The motel employee colluded with them and used their cleaning time to secretly install ultra-small cameras with a lens diameter of only 1mm inside the motel rooms, attaching them to computer monitors. It was revealed that they committed these crimes together for about six months.
Moreover, attempts to extort money by threatening guests with the distribution of sexual videos were also uncovered.
Given these circumstances, public opinion has recently called for harsher punishments for such crimes, and related legal amendments have been finalized. The revised "Special Act on the Punishment of Sexual Violence Crimes" stipulates that regardless of age, possession, purchase, storage, or viewing of illegal filming materials or copies is punishable by up to three years imprisonment or a fine of up to 30 million won.
However, despite the increased punishment levels, illegal filming itself has not been prevented. According to data obtained by Rep. Jang Hyeyoung’s office of the Justice Party from the National Police Agency, 28,369 illegal filming crimes were detected in the past five years, with 5,032 cases detected last year alone.
The most common locations for detection were subway stations and rooms (22.7%). Following these were streets and shops, apartments and houses, lodging facilities and bathhouses, schools, and various other locations where crimes occurred.
Experts suggest that crackdowns on hidden cameras must be conducted more thoroughly.
Professor Lee Soojeong of the Department of Criminal Psychology at Kyonggi University stated, "The most significant problem is the lax enforcement by the police and local governments." She added, "Various reforms have been made to allow the formation of cooperative organizations among local governments so that the police can conduct more thorough crackdowns. Also, since the law now allows punishment for possession, filming, and distribution offenses, insufficient enforcement can only be seen as neglect of responsibility."
She continued, "Raising awareness through crackdowns is necessary to reduce the incidence of illegal filming crimes. Merely increasing punishment levels for cases detected as the tip of the iceberg is insufficient. The issue is not only strengthening the punishment of criminals like Jo Joo-bin who must obviously be punished." She pointed out, "The punishment for illegal filming crimes should not be perceived as 'caught by bad luck' but as 'can be caught at any time.'"
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