More stalkers arrested than ever, latest police statistics show

The number of stalkers arrested by police across the country rose to 1,028 in 2022, setting another record, according to newly released national statistics.

Stalking cases, in which suspects were arrested for breaking criminal laws, rose to 1,650, increasing for the third straight year.

The anti-stalking law, which came into force in 2000, was revised in 2021 to broaden the definition of crimes, e.g. B. Using a GPS device or sending a letter for the purpose of tracking an individual.

The National Police Agency said there were 110 cases of the new offences.

According to the agency’s latest data, 354 cases involved home burglaries, while suspects made threats in 210 cases.

There was a murder case in which a man in his 30s stabbed to death his former girlfriend and her male boyfriend in Yokkaichi, Mie Prefecture in January last year. The man died after the incident and the papers were sent to prosecutors.

But the number of stalking consultations in 2022 was 19,131, down 3 percent from the previous year.

In 44.2 percent of the 19,131 cases, the attacker was in a relationship with the victim.

There have now been 84,496 counseling sessions on domestic violence, 1.8 percent more than in the previous year. That number surpassed records for the 19th year in a row.

While 73.1 percent of the victims in these domestic violence cases were women, the number of male victims has been increasing each year. In 2022 it was still 26.9 percent.

Police across Japan dealt with 8,581 domestic violence cases, many of which were assaults and assaults.

The NPA said the prefectural public safety commissions issued 1,744 restraining orders in 2022, more than half of which were emergencies.

A senior NPA official said more than 90 percent of attackers who received restraining orders stopped stalking.

“The system works,” the official said.

But there were those who disobeyed the order and instead doubled down on their stalking behavior.

Authorities encouraged 1,149 people to seek treatment or counseling last year – a number that is only increasing every year.

But it is up to each individual whether he accepts the advice. And only 153 of them actually received treatment or counseling.

Nine of the 153, or 5.9 percent, continued the stalking and received another warning or restraining order later that year.

There were 996 people who were encouraged to seek treatment or advice but ignored the advice, and 35 of them, or 3.5 percent, received another warning or order within the same year.

(This article was written by Hidemasa Yoshizawa and lead author Shimpachi Yoshida.)