Why Was Stalking Investigation Delayed in Busan Dating Murder? Grieving Family's Ongoing Ordeal

"I thought all the evidence would be inside my daughter's phone. In the end, we spent 800,000 won of our own money to have it forensically unlocked ourselves."

Speaking after the sentencing hearing for the stalking punishment act violation case of the perpetrator, identified as A, in the so-called "Busan dating murder" held at the Busan District Court yesterday afternoon (August 19), the victim's mother opened up about the agonizing time she has endured since sending her daughter away.

Earlier that day, the Busan District Court sentenced perpetrator A to one year and two months in prison for stalking and assault.

Previously, perpetrator A was indicted for murdering his ex-girlfriend in her twenties with a weapon on September 3, 2024, at an officetel in Yeonje-gu, Busan, after she refused to reconcile. He received a final 30-year prison sentence from the Supreme Court last year.

The trial held on this day was a separate case prosecuted after it was belatedly revealed that A had repeatedly contacted and approached the victim before murdering her.

It was only after receiving her daughter's cell phone back from the police that the victim's mother specifically confirmed the circumstances of the perpetrator's stalking.

The victim's mother stated, "There should have been decisive evidence on my daughter's phone, but the police returned it without unlocking it," adding, "To verify the history of exchanges with the perpetrator, we paid about 800,000 won to a private forensic company in Seoul and unlocked it ourselves."

The phone clearly contained evidence showing that despite the victim's explicit refusal, A constantly sent calls and messages, obsessed over her, and attempted to approach her.

The mother expressed deep regret that although her daughter had previously reported dating violence to the police before her death and even received emergency housing support, the initial police investigation failed to uncover the circumstances of the stalking.

The mother lamented, "The full-scale investigation into the stalking charges only began after the issue of lax response was pointed out during a parliamentary audit of the Busan Metropolitan Police Agency while the first trial for the murder case was underway."

At the time, the investigation team maintained the stance that they returned the device to the bereaved family because they could not technically bypass the iPhone's security lock.

The mother also expressed disappointment regarding the first-instance ruling handed down that day.

This was because the sentence fell short of even half of the three-year prison term demanded by the prosecution.

The mother appealed, "I had hoped for at least the sentence requested by the prosecution, but it stopped at one year and two months, breaking my heart," and added, "The judiciary's sentencing level for stalking crimes remains complacent and lenient."

An anti-sexual violence activist using the activist name "Solidarity D," who observed the trial together, pointed out, "Because the stalking crime was not tried jointly with the murder charge, the criminal law's mitigation provision for 'subsequent concurrent offenses' was applied, taking into consideration the equity with the already finalized murder sentence," and added, "Ultimately, the victim and the bereaved family had to endure the double hardship of going through prolonged investigation and trial processes over a single incident."

The legal battle of the bereaved family is not over yet.

While requesting an appeal from the prosecution, the mother plans to file a civil lawsuit for damages against perpetrator A.

She emphasized, "Following the murder trial, the stalking trial made every day feel like hell, and my blood ran backwards every time I faced the perpetrator," but vowed, "To clear my daughter's unfair death, I will not give up and will go through all remaining legal procedures to the end."
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.