Police agency to study feasibility of tracking stalkers via GPS

The National Police Agency said on Thursday it would start discussions next week on whether stalkers deemed to be high-risk will be required to wear GPS tracking devices and undergo mandatory counseling.

An eight-member panel, which will hold its first meeting on Monday, will examine whether electronic monitoring could be introduced under Japan’s anti-stalking laws, and if so, how to determine which offenders would be subject to tracking and how victims would be alerted when perpetrators approach them.

The proposed monitoring system would allow authorities to track offenders deemed to pose a serious threat, potentially requiring them to wear GPS-enabled devices that would trigger warnings when they enter a designated area near a victim.

However, several key details have yet to be determined, including how offenders would be classified as high risk, how long they would be required to wear the devices, whether court approval would be necessary and whether police would have access to their real-time location data.

The panel will include law and criminal policy scholars, mental health and counseling specialists, lawyers experienced in victim support and a family member of a woman murdered by a stalker in the city of Zushi, Kanagawa Prefecture, in 2012.

Japan is looking to overseas systems for guidance. South Korea introduced electronic monitoring for certain stalking offenders in 2023, allowing courts to order perpetrators to wear GPS-enabled ankle bracelets. Germany and Spain also operate electronic monitoring systems for stalking or domestic violence offenders, allowing police to intervene when perpetrators approach victims.

The panel’s establishment follows emergency measures announced by the government in July calling for the early introduction of GPS monitoring and stronger intervention to prevent stalking cases from escalating into serious violence. The measures were prompted in part by the March killing of a 21-year-old woman by her ex-boyfriend at a Pokemon Center store in Tokyo’s Ikebukuro district in March, despite the man having previously been arrested and issued a restraining order.

Alongside GPS tracking, the expert panel will examine whether certain offenders should be legally required to undergo psychological treatment or counseling aimed at addressing obsessive behavior and controlling tendencies.

Since 2024, police have encouraged all individuals issued restraining orders to seek treatment or counseling, referring them to medical institutions and other support services. However, it’s not mandatory, and participation rates have remained low, with only 184 of 3,271 people referred in 2024 doing so, a rate of just 5.6%.

In 2025, police received 22,881 consultations related to stalking, while the number of restraining orders rose 25.8% from the previous year to a record 3,037. Police apprehended a record 1,546 people for violating the anti-stalking law, marking the fourth consecutive annual increase.