Seoul, Incheon, Busan, Daegu, and other cities nationwide: Hundreds of people in their 20s filmed, but videos not distributed
A man in his 30s who traveled across the country installing cameras disguised as internet routers in hotel rooms and illegally filmed hundreds of guests was arrested by the police.
On the 27th, the Namdong Police Station in Incheon arrested Mr. A (30) on charges of filming using a camera, etc., under the Special Act on the Punishment of Sexual Crimes, according to Yonhap News Agency on the same day.
A camera disguised as an internet router seized by the Namdong Police Station in Incheon. [Photo by Yonhap News]
Mr. A is accused of installing a total of 20 cameras in 14 hotel rooms in Seoul, Incheon, Busan, and Daegu over about a month from mid-last month until the 17th, illegally filming hundreds of guests on video.
He reportedly disguised the cameras as internet routers and installed them on TV shelves or above air conditioners in hotel or motel rooms, focusing on filming the bed area.
The illegal filming by Mr. A was discovered by a hotel employee.
An employee at a hotel in Namdong-gu, Incheon, found a camera disguised as an internet router while cleaning a room on the 17th and immediately reported it to 112.
Afterwards, the police who arrived at the scene checked nearby closed-circuit televisions (CCTV) and arrested Mr. A at his residence in Incheon on the 21st, four days after the report was filed. During the investigation following Mr. A’s arrest, the police confirmed additional crimes and collected all cameras installed in the hotels.
Fortunately, it is known that no video leaks occurred. In the police investigation, Mr. A claimed, "I planned to return to the rooms at the end of this month to retrieve the cameras and had no intention of distributing the videos."
A police official said, "We quickly collected the cameras and confirmed that the videos illegally filmed by Mr. A were not distributed externally," adding, "Considering the seriousness of the case, Mr. A was detained."
Meanwhile, an anonymous informant who identified themselves as a hotel staff member sent an email to Yonhap News Agency regarding this case.
The informant said in the email, "If guests had discovered the hidden cameras before the police, that hotel would have gone bankrupt," and added, "I reported this to raise awareness so that such hidden camera crimes do not occur."
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