▲ A man in his 40s, accused of murdering a woman who had previously reported him for stalking, leaves the detention center at the Daejeon Dongbu Police Station on October 27 to attend his warrant review hearing.
The Daejeon Provincial Police Agency announced today (October 29) that it has decided not to disclose the personal identity of a man in his 40s, identified as A, who was arrested for murdering his former girlfriend a year after she reported him for stalking.
Through a media notice released this morning, the police explained that they decided not to convene a committee for the disclosure of personal information, taking into consideration the wishes of the victim's bereaved family members who opposed revealing A's identity.
The police also stated that the decision was made out of concern that disclosing A's identity could lead to secondary victimization of the victim and her family.
Under the current Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Specific Violent Crimes, a committee can be convened to disclose a suspect's face, name, and age if requirements such as brutality and severe harm, sufficient evidence of guilt, and the public's right to know and public interest are met.
However, the wishes of the victim's side are also taken into account during this process.
A is accused of assaulting and strangling a woman in her 40s, identified as B, to death at her home in Jung-gu, Daejeon, on the afternoon of October 24, and then fleeing the scene.
After the crime, A removed the USIM chip from his mobile phone, headed toward Incheon International Airport by taxi, and then escaped to Gangneung, Gangwon Province. He was emergency-arrested at a lodging establishment in Gangneung at around 7:40 a.m. on October 25 and was formally arrested on October 27.
While A claimed during police questioning that the crime was impulsive, the police are using digital forensics on his mobile phone and deploying profilers to determine whether the crime was premeditated and to verify his clear motive.
Last October, A was reported to the 112 emergency hotline by B for stalking, but the case was closed without charges in November after B stated that she did not wish for him to be punished.
A 112 report was also filed in December of the same year during an argument between the two, but the police concluded the case at the scene after determining there were no criminal charges.
(Photo: Yonhap News)
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