"You're cute." "I'll take you home." "Get in the car." These are words that strangers said to children on their way home from school. Men in their twenties are on trial on charges of trying to get four elementary school students into a car by saying such things on three occasions in the Seodaemun-gu area of Seoul on the afternoon of August 28 last year. Because the children refused and walked away, the men did not actually take them anywhere.
At the first hearing held at the Seoul Western District Court on the 16th, the two defendants denied the charges. The charges are attempted enticement of a minor and violation of the Child Welfare Act (child abuse). The police referred the case to the prosecution in March this year on a charge of attempted enticement of a minor without detaining the suspects, and after a supplementary investigation, the prosecution added a charge of emotional abuse and indicted them without detention in August. The defense has called as a witness a friend who was riding in the back seat of the car at the time, and the next hearing is scheduled for December 18. Criticism was also raised that the police were slow to respond early on because they judged the first report to be a mistaken one.
Guilt or innocence will be decided at trial. Still, whether someone can be punished even though they did not actually take a child away, and why a few words can amount to child abuse, are things every parent would do well to know.
1. Why It Is a Crime Even If the Child Was Not Taken
A. The crime of enticing a minor and punishment for attempts
Article 287 of the Criminal Act punishes a person who kidnaps or entices a minor by imprisonment for not more than ten years. It is a serious crime for which no fine is available. "Kidnapping" means taking someone away by violence or intimidation, and "enticement" means taking someone away by deceiving or luring them. Where, as in this case, someone tries to get a child into a car by offering compliments or kindness, enticement is the issue.
Article 294 of the same Act also punishes attempts at the crime under Article 287. Even if the child refused and did not get into the car, a person who has begun luring the child with the intention of taking them away can be guilty of an attempt. For an attempt, the punishment may be mitigated, but the person is not exempted from punishment itself.
B. The court's view
Enticement does not necessarily require a lie.
Supreme Court Decision 95Do2980, February 27, 1996
"Temptation," as a means of enticement, need not amount to deception; it is sufficient that it misleads the other party with sweet talk and causes them to misjudge, and its content need not necessarily be false.
Even if the words "I'll take you home" sound kind on the surface, they can amount to temptation if they were a means of separating a child with immature judgment from the care of their guardian and moving the child into the speaker's car. In the end, the key issue at trial is whether the defendants intended to take the children away. This also appears to be why the fellow passenger has been called as a witness, to establish what was said inside the car.
2. Can a Few Words Amount to Child Abuse?
A. The scope of emotional abuse
Article 17, Item 5 of the Child Welfare Act provides that no one may commit acts of emotional abuse that harm a child's mental health and development, and under Article 71(1)2, a violation is punishable by imprisonment for not more than five years or a fine not exceeding 50 million won. This provision does not apply only to guardians such as parents or teachers. An adult a child meets on the street for the first time is also covered. Under the Child Welfare Act, a child is a person under the age of 18 (Article 3, Item 1).
B. The court's view
Supreme Court Decision 2015Do13488, December 23, 2015
Acts of emotional abuse include not only cases that actually impair a child's mental health and development but also cases that create a risk or possibility of such a result, and even without the purpose of abuse, it is sufficient that the person was aware of that risk at least as a possibility (dolus eventualis).
A situation in which a stranger repeatedly urges a child to get into a car can leave the child with great fear. Even if a defendant says, "I didn't mean to scare anyone," emotional abuse may be found if they knew that such words and actions could make a child anxious. The prosecution's decision to add this charge separately from attempted enticement is in the same vein.
3. If Your Child Has Been Approached by a Stranger
A. Report in detail, and secure evidence quickly
If your child says, "A man I don't know told me to get in his car," do not dismiss it as a joke; it is best to call 112 right away. In this case, too, it was pointed out that the initial response was delayed because the first report was treated as a mistaken one. When reporting, you should convey the time, the place, the color and model of the car, part of the license plate, and what the person said as specifically as possible, so that the investigative authorities do not take the situation lightly.
Footage from CCTV cameras at shops and on roads near the scene, and from the dashcams of passing vehicles, is often erased within a few days. Ask the police to secure the footage promptly, and also get the contact details of any friends who were with your child and of their guardians.
B. Keep your child's statement as it is
A child's memory is easily influenced by the way adults ask questions. Rather than asking leading questions with the answer already decided, such as "That man tried to drag you away, didn't he?", it is better to ask an open question like "What happened?" and then write down the exact expressions your child used. Repeating the same question many times can make the statement waver, so it is better to leave later questioning to the procedures of the investigative authorities. If your child cannot sleep or is afraid to go to school, get medical treatment and counseling and keep the records. This protects your child, and it can also serve as material showing emotional harm.
C. If you have been reported because of a misunderstanding
Conversely, there are also cases in which someone who was asking for directions or trying to help is misunderstood. In that case, you should first secure objective materials that show the situation at the time, such as your car's dashcam footage and your mobile phone records. The statement you make in your first interview follows you to the end, so rather than filling in hazy parts of your memory with guesses, it is safer to attend the interview with a defense attorney.
4. Closing
Once the harm has occurred, crimes of enticing children cannot be undone. That is why the law punishes even attempts and treats words that plunge a child into anxiety as abuse. The guilt or innocence of the defendants in this case will be decided at trial, but whether the next harm can be prevented depends on how adults and investigative authorities take a child's words, "There was a strange person." Safety measures for children's routes to and from school must also start with not brushing off the first report.
(Shin Dong-woo, Managing Partner, DAEON Law Firm)
Photo: megforce1, CC0 (Flickr, Openverse)
2026. 10. 18. · By Attorney Dongwoo Shin
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