Relationship-Based Crimes Surge Past 110,000 Cases This Year
Reports of so-called 'relationship-based crimes' such as stalking and dating violence have surpassed 110,000 in just eight months this year. That works out to roughly 457 cases a day, or one every three minutes. According to National Police Agency data, reports of such crimes have exceeded 100,000 annually for five consecutive years.
Data provided by the National Police Agency and obtained on the 20th through the office of Rep. Kang Myoung-gu of the People Power Party, a member of the National Assembly's Public Administration and Security Committee, showed that from January to August this year, there were 36,944 stalking-related 112 emergency calls and 74,070 dating violence reports, totaling 111,014 cases. Stalking and dating violence reports have risen steadily over the past five years: 71,814 in 2021, 100,355 in 2022, 108,974 in 2023, 120,341 in 2024, and 150,028 in 2025.
Stalking reports have shown a pronounced upward trend since spring, recording 5,073 cases in April and remaining above 5,000 per month for five consecutive months through August. Dating violence reports rose from 8,426 in January to 9,526 in April, 10,442 in May, 9,909 in June, 9,609 in July, and 9,729 in August, averaging about 305 per day.
Because relationship-based crimes occur between intimate partners or former partners, victims are likely to come into contact with perpetrators again even after reporting. Lee Yoon-ho, a professor of police administration at Dongguk University, explained, "The surest way to prevent relationship-based crimes is to separate the perpetrator from the victim. Violence occurs when the perpetrator and victim are in the same place at the same time, so keeping them apart is both the best prevention and the best protection."
The National Police Agency has budgeted 2.258 billion won for next year's 'intelligent CCTV-based safety measures for crime victims,' an increase of 555 million won (32.6%) from this year's 1.703 billion won.
The police have also newly allocated 100 million won in next year's budget for 'scenario-based training for relationship-based crimes,' targeting local police officers at precinct substations and police boxes who are first to respond to stalking, dating violence, domestic violence, and school violence scenes. Through these measures, the police plan to shift their response to relationship-based crimes from after-the-fact investigation to prevention, detecting early warning signs at the initial reporting and dispatch stage and strengthening protective measures for high-risk victims.
