Man stalked his ex-girlfriend 165 times... Overturned to 'not guilty' due to victim's profile picture

A man in his 30s who repeatedly contacted his ex-girlfriend several times received a summary injunction, but was acquitted after requesting a formal trial.

On January 16, Criminal Division 22 of the Seoul Central District Court (Judge Ha Jin-woo) declared Mr. A, a man in his 30s, not guilty after being handed over to trial on charges of violating the Act on the Punishment of Stalking Crimes.

Mr. A was accused of calling B, with whom he broke up in 2023, 165 times or sending messages, photos, videos, etc., even though B asked him not to contact her any more.

The prosecution deemed that Mr. A was guilty of stalking and summarily indicted him on charges of violating the Stalking Punishment Act with a fine of 2 million won. Afterwards, the court issued a summary order, but Mr. A, who refused to comply, requested a formal trial.

During the trial, Mr. A claimed that he did this to improve relationships. He emphasized that he followed Mr. B's request because when he broke up several times and reunited, Mr. B said, "Repeatedly try to catch me," and "It's not a crime, so please contact me."

Afterwards, the two reconciled for a while, but their relationship deteriorated again soon after. Mr. A's side added, "At this time, Mr. B continued to encourage contact by setting up a SNS profile screen asking him to come back.

The court ruled that Mr. A was not guilty. The court said, "It is acknowledged that the defendant repeatedly called or sent messages," but added, "The victim only started dating again when the defendant made efforts, such as contacting her several times or visiting her, during the process of repeated breakups and reunions."

He continued, "The victim also sent messages or visited the defendant's house to meet with him. Even after the relationship worsened again, the victim only ignored the contact and did not clearly express what he should not do."

Attorney Kim Myeong-cheol of Daeryun Law Firm (Lihan), who represented Mr. A, said, "During the trial, we emphasized Mr. A's circumstances, which he believed would be able to restore their relationship if he took the actions requested by Mr. B. We were able to obtain a not guilty verdict by emphasizing that Mr. A had no intent to commit the crime."

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

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Man stalked his ex-girlfriend 165 times... Overturned to 'not guilty' because of victim's profile picture (Shortcut)