"Targeting Women Living Alone"... Gwanak-gu Has the Highest Number of Residential Intrusion Sex Crimes in Seoul

246 Cases Occurred in the Last 5 Years
Clusters in Areas with Many Single-Person Households

Over the past five years, more than 200 cases of residential intrusion sexual crimes targeting women living alone have occurred in Seoul. Among the autonomous districts, Gwanak-gu, which has an overwhelmingly large number of single-person households, experienced the highest frequency.

According to the National Police Agency on the 19th, from 2019 to June of this year, there were 246 cases of residential intrusion sexual crimes reported by autonomous districts in Seoul. By district, Gwanak-gu had 21 cases, Gwangjin-gu 18 cases, Seocho-gu 18 cases, Gangnam-gu 15 cases, Yeongdeungpo-gu 14 cases, Seodaemun-gu 13 cases, Songpa-gu 12 cases, Gangdong-gu 12 cases, Geumcheon-gu 11 cases, Gangseo-gu 10 cases, and Guro-gu 10 cases.

The areas with frequent residential intrusion sexual crimes were highly correlated with places having many single-person households. As of last year, Seoul had 1,627,480 single-person households, accounting for 39.2% of the total. Among them, Gwanak-gu had 150,745 single-person households, Gangseo-gu 104,509, Songpa-gu 87,140, Yeongdeungpo-gu 77,895, and Gangnam-gu 76,809, in that order.

Actual cases of residential intrusion sexual crimes continue unabated. In June, a man in his 20s, Mr. A, was arrested in Gwanak-gu, Seoul, on charges of rape, confinement, stalking, and residential intrusion. Mr. A was investigated for sexually assaulting his ex-girlfriend and unlawfully entering the victim’s cafe twice. In January, a man in his 40s, Mr. B, was caught in Songpa-gu, Seoul, for chasing a woman he had never met to her home, breaking the door lock, committing rape, and fleeing. Mr. B was wearing an electronic ankle bracelet due to prior sexual offense convictions.

The National Police Agency stated that it conducts tailored prevention and inspection activities and special crackdowns by period and target every year to prevent and eradicate sexual crimes in general. A police official explained, “The Crime Prevention Officer (CPO) team inspects crime-vulnerable locations such as areas densely populated by single-person households, residences of high-risk repeat sexual offenders, and secluded pedestrian paths.” He added, “We collaborate with local governments to promote environmental improvement projects and install crime prevention facilities such as emergency bells and CCTV.”