Man in blond wig caught illegally filming women in bathhouse

(gettyimagesbank)

A man in his 30s who had disguised himself as a woman was apprehended by the police while using his phone to film video in the women's changing room of a public bathhouse in Daejeon.

Daejeon Daedeok Police Station has stated that officers are investigating the man on charges of violating the Special Act on the Punishment of Sexual Violence Crimes.

The man is accused of entering the women's changing room of a public bathhouse in Daejeon's Daedeok district on Aug. 26. He was disguised as a woman by wearing a blonde wig and dress, and filmed inside the bathhouse with his phone.

The bathhouse staff, suspicious of his actions, confronted the man and reported him to the police, leading to his immediate arrest as a suspect.

Upon arriving at the scene, the police arrested the man on charges of trespassing in a multi-use facility for sexual purposes. They discovered video footage of the women's changing room, filmed before the staff intervened, on the man's mobile phone.

During police questioning, the man stated that he had filmed the video footage out of "curiosity."

No other illegally filmed footage was found on his phone, but the police are conducting digital forensics to determine if there were additional illegal recordings.

On Aug. 28, the police applied for an arrest warrant for the man, adding charges related to the use of a camera under the Special Act on the Punishment of Sexual Violence Crimes. However, the court rejected the request, stating that there was no significant flight risk.

Secretly capturing images or videos of individuals in a manner that may induce sexual desire or shame against their will is legally punishable in Korea as a violation of the act and digital sex crime.

The police plan to send the man to the prosecution without detention in the near future.

By Cho Min-jeong(blacknib@heraldcorp.com)