30s Arrested for Posting False Articles About 'Mass Mask Sales' and Pocketing Hundreds of Millions of Won

The photo shows a mask shortage situation due to the spread of COVID-19 / Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Kim Seul-gi] Amid the shortage of masks caused by the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), a man in his 30s who made hundreds of millions of won through mask sales fraud was arrested by the police.

On the 25th, the Cyber Investigation Unit of the Jeonbuk Provincial Police Agency announced that they had applied for an arrest warrant for A (36) on charges of fraud.

A is suspected of posting online since early this month that he was "selling masks in bulk" and then defrauding distributors who contacted him after seeing the posts.

A induced distributors to make advance payments by claiming, "I own a mask manufacturing factory. I will sell them cheaper than the market price," and after receiving the money, he cut off contact and disappeared, collecting 235 million won from seven distribution companies nationwide.

According to the police investigation, A reportedly stated, "I committed the crime to pay off debts."

A police official said, "A involved actual mask distribution intermediaries to gain the trust of company representatives. It appears the crime was committed due to the mask shortage caused by COVID-19," adding, "Recently, crimes such as mask sales scams and spreading false information related to COVID-19 have been rampant. Those involved in such crimes will be severely punished."

Meanwhile, the police stated that they are conducting related investigations, believing there may be more mask sales fraud activities.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.