Sexual assault convicts allowed to travel abroad remove anklets

Sexual assault convicts allowed to travel abroad remove anklets. October. 16, 2012 08:40. sunggyu@donga.com.

Those convicted of sexual assault who are supposed to wear electronic monitoring anklets have been found to travel overseas with their anklets unfastened. Two have been put on the wanted list after failing to return to Korea.

According to Justice Ministry data submitted to Rep. Seo Young-kyo of the main opposition Democratic United Party, who is on the parliamentary legislation and judiciary committee, 26 people convicted of sexual assault have departed the country under permission from probation officers since 2006, when the system was introduced. One ex-convict who was sentenced to three years in prison after committing a juvenile sexual offense went to China in November 2010 on a five-day business trip, but never returned. Another was sentenced to 12 years in prison for murder but was paroled 16 months before his release date on the condition that he wore a monitoring anklet. In February this year, he went to China saying he would stay for three months to get a job but went missing.

Rep. Seo said, "Probation officers make arbitrary decisions to allow these people to travel overseas, and this goes against the purpose of the electronic anklet system, which is to prevent the recurrence of sexual abuse."

The Justice Ministry said, however, "It is against the law to restrict relocation of residence and travel for those wearing electronic anklets."