A woman in her 60s who had filed eight police reports over domestic violence and stalking was killed by her estranged husband. Police had classified her as a high-risk victim and placed her under monitoring, but made no additional safety checks on the day of the killing even after she failed to answer a monitoring call. Critics say the protection system has a gap, noting that police have no detailed protocol for what to do when a high-risk victim cannot be reached.
According to the Jeonbuk State Police Agency on the 15th, the woman, identified only as A, was found dead at an apartment in Deokjin District, Jeonju, at about 5 p.m. the previous day. An acquaintance who visited her home after she failed to show up for work and could not be reached found bloodstains near the entrance and called police. Police believe her estranged husband, identified as B, stabbed her to death between 5:30 p.m. and 7 p.m. on the 13th.
A had filed seven reports with police since April this year, saying her husband was threatening her. Last month she filed another report, saying she was frightened after receiving dozens of text messages from B. Police booked B on charges of violating the Act on Punishment of Stalking Crimes and had been monitoring A as a victim in a high-risk case.
The protective measures, however, failed to prevent the killing. Police called A at about 5:43 p.m. on the 13th, the day of the attack, but could not reach her. That time overlaps with the window in which police believe the killing took place. Even so, officers did not try to contact her again or visit her home to check on her safety. Her death was not discovered until about 24 hours later.
While the National Police Agency has rules requiring the monitoring of high-risk victims, it has no detailed protocol on what steps to take when contact is lost, such as when a victim does not answer the phone.
An official at the Jeonbuk State Police Agency said: "When a victim does not answer the phone, we try calling again after some time or send a text message, but the officer in charge was off duty the next day and could not do so. We will revise the protocol for cases where calls go unanswered."
Whether precautions against the assailant were adequate is also in question. B had been issued a written warning and orders barring him from approaching or contacting A under provisional stalking measures Nos. 1 through 3. But police judged the risk of a repeat offense to be low, citing that B had stalked her by sending text messages without any direct physical contact and that he was elderly. They therefore did not apply for additional steps such as an electronic monitoring device.
After the killing, police arrested B on a murder charge in Seocheon, South Chungcheong Province, without a warrant. He had ingested poison at the time of his arrest, and police plan to investigate whether the killing was premeditated and determine his specific motive once his medical treatment is complete.
