"Victim Wanted It More" 70 Cases of Sexual Exploitation... SNS 'Noye Nori' Targeting Minors

Approaching Children Under the Pretext of 'Noye Nori'... Receiving Videos
Digital Child Sexual Exploitation More Than Doubled in the Past 2 Years
Experts Urge Establishment of a Center to Prevent Minor Sexual Exploitation

Choi Chan-wook (26), who is accused of sexually assaulting a minor and producing and distributing sexual exploitation materials, is being transferred to the prosecution after leaving Dunsan Police Station in Seo-gu, Daejeon on the morning of June 24. / Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Juhyung] "There was absolutely no coercion or threats. Rather, the 'slaves' wanted it more intensely."

This is what Choi Chan-wook (26), who is on trial for sexually exploiting about 70 minor male students, said in court. Choi is accused of approaching children through dozens of social networking service (SNS) accounts over approximately five years and receiving sexually exploitative videos.

Concerns are growing that SNS is being exploited as a gateway for digital sexual exploitation. The method involves approaching minors under the pretext of playing so-called 'slave play,' obtaining photos and videos, and then using them for blackmail. Experts have suggested establishing an organization to protect minors from digital sexual exploitation.

The 11th Criminal Division of the Daejeon District Court (Presiding Judge Park Heon-haeng) recently held the second pretrial hearing for Choi, who was indicted on charges including violation of the Act on the Protection of Children and Juveniles from Sexual Abuse, violation of the Child Welfare Act, habitual statutory rape of minors, and blackmail using recorded materials.

Choi's defense denied forcibly sexually exploiting the male students, claiming, "While playing the slave-master role, the slaves (victims) actually wanted it more intensely. Although I asked them to film and send videos, it was just part of the play."

He added, "Rather, I was forced to faithfully play the role of the master. However, this does not apply to all victims, and it is difficult to specify."

Regarding allegations of directly meeting some victims and committing forced molestation and sexual assault, he said, "It is difficult to specify the victims, but if identified during the trial, I will consider whether to admit or deny."

Choi is accused of using a total of 30 SNS accounts over about five years from 2016 to April this year to approach over 70 child victims and receive sexually exploitative videos. During this process, he impersonated a soccer coach, women, and children to approach victims.

Additionally, Choi is accused of meeting two victims under the age of 16 in person and committing statutory rape five times, and forcibly molesting another victim three times.

On social networking services (SNS) such as Twitter, promotional posts offering to engage in 'slave play' for money were also posted. / Photo by Twitter capture

Choi is known to have committed the crimes using the so-called 'slave play,' which is popular among some SNS users. Slave play involves one person directing body movements as if performing sexual acts on another, who follows the commands.

Earlier, the so-called 'Nth Room case,' in which women including minors were blackmailed into producing sexually exploitative materials that were then distributed for money, was also reported to have involved approaching victims through SNS such as Twitter.

Even after Choi was arrested and indicted, posts seeking participants for slave play could easily be found on various SNS platforms. On the 8th, Asia Economy searched for 'slave play' in the search bar of a specific SNS and found dozens of related posts. One user introduced themselves as a minor and promoted offering slave play in exchange for money.

Digital sexual exploitation through online spaces such as SNS is increasing every year. According to the 'Trend and Analysis of Sexual Crimes Against Children and Adolescents' report released this year by the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, the number of child and adolescent victims of digital sexual crimes recorded in 2019 was 505, more than double the previous year's 251.

Experts advise establishing a dedicated organization to protect minors from digital sexual crimes.

Jung Hyewon, a research fellow at the Gyeonggi Family and Women’s Research Institute, emphasized in a report titled "Online Grooming Sexual Crimes and Children and Adolescents," "A Korean-style Online Minor Sexual Exploitation Prevention Center should be established," explaining, "Children and adolescents lack awareness of sexual exploitation and may not recognize danger signals even when in crisis."

Researcher Jung explained that advanced countries like the UK already have dedicated organizations and related reporting systems for online sexual crimes against children. He said, "The key is to build a system where children, adolescents, and parents can easily report (sexual crimes)," and suggested, "It is also necessary to educate and inform minors about sexual exploitation crimes through expert training and teach them how to respond."

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