[2020 National Audit] Sexual Offender Recidivism Increasing Every Year... Online Sexual Crimes Surge by 248%

Han Byung-do, Member of the Democratic Party of Korea
[Photo by Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Jung-yoon] It has been revealed that the recidivism rate of sex crime offenders committing the same type of crime is increasing every year.

According to the National Assembly audit data submitted by the National Police Agency to Han Byung-do, a member of the National Assembly's Public Administration and Security Committee from the Democratic Party of Korea, the number of recidivism cases of sex crime offenders with prior convictions for the same type of crime totaled 7,271 from 2016 to last year. By year, there were 1,301 cases in 2016, 1,722 cases in 2017, 2,115 cases in 2018, and 2,133 cases last year, showing a 64% increase over four years.

In particular, recidivism in sex crimes using online media and communication media has surged significantly, increasing by 248% from 31 cases in 2016 to 108 cases in 2019. Recidivism of sex offenders who secretly enter multiple public places such as restrooms or bathhouses increased by 232% over four years, and recidivism of illegal filming using cameras also rose by 68%.

Additionally, recidivism in rape and forced molestation cases increased by about 52%, from 1,006 cases in 2016 to 1,535 cases in 2019. Rape and forced molestation recidivism accounted for 73.2% of all sex crime recidivism cases.

Representative Han stated, "The increasing trend across all types of sex crime prior convictions is causing public anxiety," and emphasized, "The police should work with related agencies such as the Ministry of Justice to raise the level of punishment and make efforts to prepare measures to prevent recidivism."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.