Police Intensify Crackdown on Cyber Sexual Violence Crimes, Arrest 801 Suspects in 8 Months

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] The National Police Agency's Cyber Investigation Division announced on the 27th that it conducted an intensive crackdown on 'cyber sexual violence crimes' over eight months since March, arresting 801 individuals, of whom 53 were detained.

By crime type, among the total 786 cases apprehended, child sexual exploitation materials (294 cases, 37.4%) and illegal filming crimes (269 cases, 34.2%) were the most common. Illegal sexual videos (24.5%) and false videos (3.8%) followed.

Looking at suspects by age group, teenagers were found to commit false video crimes most frequently. Suspects in their teens and twenties had a higher proportion of child sexual exploitation crimes, while those in their 30s and 40s were more involved in illegal filming and illegal sexual video crimes. From age 50 and above, the proportion across all crime types was small.

Since the revised Youth Protection Act came into effect on September 24 last year, the police have been conducting undercover investigations targeting digital sexual crimes against children and adolescents. As a result, in the nine months following the enforcement, 187 individuals were arrested in 147 undercover operations, with 18 detained.

Examining the crime types of suspects caught through undercover operations, sales, distribution, and advertising of child sexual exploitation materials accounted for the majority (106 individuals, 56%). Possession and viewing of child sexual exploitation materials accounted for the next highest proportion (73 individuals, 39%).

The police plan to strengthen the existing crackdown system until October and continue to utilize undercover investigation methods strictly against digital sexual crimes targeting children and adolescents. Considering that a significant number of suspects in child sexual exploitation crimes are teenagers, they also plan to promote crime prevention campaigns targeting students and parents during the summer vacation period.

A National Police Agency Cyber Investigation Division official stated, "We will continue to strictly crack down on cyber sexual violence crimes by comprehensively employing undercover investigation systems, general cyber investigation techniques, and international cooperative investigations, and do our utmost to eradicate these crimes."

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