Man arrested for repeated indecent exposure near girls' high school, hiking trail in Daejeon

A man in his 50s has been arrested for repeatedly exposing himself to women along hiking trails on Dosulsan and near a girls' high school in Seo-gu, Daejeon.

The Daejeon Seobu Police Station said Wednesday it had apprehended a 56-year-old suspect, identified only as A, on public indecency charges and was questioning him.

A is accused of appearing in mid-September near hiking trails on Dosulsan and around a nearby girls' high school with his face concealed by a mask, balaclava and hat, then exposing himself and waving at female high school students and women hikers before fleeing.

He targeted areas without CCTV cameras, committing the acts and disappearing almost instantly. Investigators found he had also changed his clothes on the mountain after each incident to evade police while keeping his face hidden throughout.

Police launched an investigation after receiving a 112 emergency call about the flasher on April 26, but struggled to identify a suspect.

In response, police formed a special public indecency investigation team and mobilized about 100 officers. They reviewed all 63 entry and exit points on Dosulsan and 98 CCTV cameras in the area, while running drone patrols and stakeout operations simultaneously. The efforts led to A's arrest Wednesday around 2:30 p.m. near his residence in Dong-gu, Daejeon.

Police said they view it as serious that A targeted minors, including female high school students, and plan to seek an arrest warrant on the additional charge of violating the Child Welfare Act for sexual abuse of a child — which carries a heavier sentence than public indecency alone.

"He has admitted to the recent offenses but is denying involvement in the April incident," a police official said. "We are investigating him over the April case and looking into whether there are any additional crimes."