“I asked for money,” but when that didn’t work, I reported it as stalking… Jeokbanhajang’s ex-husband

A woman who was handed over to the prosecution on charges of contacting her ex-husband through phone calls and messages on several occasions was not indicted.

On December 24 last year, the Suncheon Branch of the Gwangju District Prosecutors' Office ruled that Mr. A, who was suspected of violating the Act on Punishment of Stalking Crimes, was 'not guilty'. Ms. A was accused of contacting her ex-husband, Mr. B, on approximately 30 occasions in September of last year.

Mr. A denied the charges. He refuted that Mr. B continued to ask for a lot of money and that he only contacted him to ask the reason for this. He then emphasized that during the process of communicating, Mr. B never expressed his intention to refuse contact.

The prosecution determined that Mr. A was not guilty. The prosecution said, "We have confirmed that hundreds of messages were exchanged between the two at the time the crime occurred," and added, "It cannot be seen that the suspect sent the messages unilaterally."

He went on to explain, “The message only contains information about how to solve financial problems, and no expression of intent to cause harm has been confirmed,” adding, “The suspect’s actions may cause annoyance and unpleasant feelings, but they cannot be seen as actions that cause anxiety or fear.”

Attorney Sangwan Oh of Daeryun Law Firm (Limited), who acted as legal representative for Mr. A, said, "Stalking is causing anxiety or fear through a specific act against the other person's will and without justifiable reason," and added, "Mr. A had circumstances to ask for the reason for Mr. B's request for money."

He added, "Mr. B did not answer Mr. A's phone call asking for the money back, but continued to ask for money through messages." He added, "After judging these issues comprehensively, the prosecution appears to have determined that Mr. A's actions did not constitute stalking."

Reporter Hwang Jeong-won (jwhwang@mt.co.kr)

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He asked for "give me money" and when that didn't work, he reported it as stalking... Jeokbanhajang’s ex-husband (link)