Man in His 50s Indicted in Custody for Threatening "Knife Rampage at Blue House" After Turning Off Ankle Monitor

Indicted without detention on stalking charges in September
Additional charges include damaging the effectiveness of an electronic monitoring device

A man in his 50s who was wearing an electronic ankle monitor in connection with a stalking case was indicted while in custody after allowing the device to run out of power and threatening to go on a knife rampage at the Blue House, the National Police Agency and other locations.

According to legal sources on November 13, the Seoul Eastern District Prosecutors' Office indicted Mr. Kim the previous day while he was in custody, on charges of violating the Stalking Punishment Act (damaging the effectiveness of an electronic monitoring device) and obstructing the performance of official duties by deceptive means. The case was brought before the Seoul Eastern District Court.

Mr. Kim is accused of calling the Seoul Eastern District Probation Office on November 1 and warning that he would carry out knife attacks at the Blue House, the National Police Agency and the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, among other locations. At the time, a temporary measure requiring him to wear a location-tracking electronic device had been imposed in connection with a stalking case. He is also accused of failing to charge his ankle monitor and allowing it to shut down.

When an ankle monitor's battery drops to 25% or below, a signal is sent to the probation office. However, Mr. Kim is believed to have traveled to subway stations and other places while his ankle monitor was out of power.

Police who responded to a report from the probation office arrested Mr. Kim at around 12:20 p.m. on November 1 on a street in Naesu-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul. No weapon was found on him at the time. The Jongno Police Station transferred him to the Seoul Songpa Police Station, which had been investigating the earlier stalking case.

The Songpa Police Station requested a warrant for Mr. Kim's arrest the following day, and the court issued the warrant on November 3, citing concerns that he might flee and the risk of reoffending. On November 4, police transferred Mr. Kim to the Seoul Eastern District Prosecutors' Office while in custody on charges of violating the Stalking Punishment Act and making a public threat.

The earlier stalking case that led to Mr. Kim being required to wear an ankle monitor is proceeding separately. On September 23, the Seoul Eastern District Prosecutors' Office indicted him without detention on a charge of violating the Stalking Punishment Act.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.