40s Sentenced to Prison for Following Ex-Lover... Already Has Previous Stalking Conviction

"Committed Crimes Such as Stalking and Trespassing in the Past as Well"

A man in his 40s who sent two follow requests to his ex-lover's social networking service (SNS) account was sentenced to prison on stalking charges.

The Criminal Division 14 of the Incheon District Court (Presiding Judge Ryu Kyung-jin) announced on the 14th that it sentenced Mr. A (47), who was indicted for violating the Act on the Punishment of Stalking Crimes, to eight months in prison. He was also ordered to complete 40 hours of a stalking treatment program.

Mr. A was arrested and indicted on charges of stalking for sending two follow requests to his ex-lover Mr. B's Instagram account in June last year. During their past relationship, he had assaulted and threatened Mr. B, which led to their breakup, and he was previously sentenced to one year and four months in prison for stalking.

After being released from prison in March last year, Mr. A sought ways to contact Mr. B and sent follow requests on Instagram, according to the investigation. Mr. B rejected Mr. A's follow requests and reported him to the police, and the court issued a provisional order including a restraining order.

The prosecution also judged that Mr. A's actions at the time constituted stalking that caused Mr. B anxiety and fear, and brought him to trial. The prosecution further applied charges of retaliatory threats under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes, alleging that Mr. A filed a false civil lawsuit to find out Mr. B's home address and then sent threatening text messages. However, the court recognized Mr. A's stalking charges but acquitted him of the retaliatory threats charges.

The court stated, "The defendant created his account just before sending the follow requests to the victim," and "The reasons for sending the follow requests were inconsistent (changing during the investigation and in court)." It added, "The defendant has previously committed crimes such as stalking and trespassing against the victim."

However, the court added, "It is acknowledged that the defendant filed a civil lawsuit against the victim and sent text messages," but "It is difficult to conclude that harm was caused by sending the text messages."

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