Son Jung-woo, Who Avoided Extradition to the U.S., Faces Full-Scale Police Reinvestigation... Will New Charges Emerge?

Scheduled Summons of Father for Complaint and Accusation on the 17th
All Criminal Proceeds Recovered... Some Skeptical Responses to Investigation

Son Jung-woo, the operator of the world's largest child sexual exploitation site "Welcome to Video," was released and leaving Seoul Detention Center on the afternoon of the 6th of this month following the court's decision to deny extradition to the United States.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-joo] The police are launching a full-scale reinvestigation into the charges of concealment of criminal proceeds related to Son Jeong-woo (24, photo), the operator of the dark web child sexual exploitation site "Welcome to Video (W2V)," who avoided extradition to the United States.

According to the police on the 14th, the Cyber Investigation Division of the National Police Agency, which is investigating this case, plans to summon Son's father (54) on the 17th of this month as a complainant and accuser for questioning. Earlier, when Son faced the risk of being extradited to the U.S., his father filed a complaint and accusation against his son at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office on May 11, charging him with violations of the Act on the Regulation and Punishment of Criminal Proceeds Concealment, forgery of private documents, and use of forged private documents. Son's father claims that during the past investigation of Son for charges such as production and distribution of obscene materials, the prosecution did not investigate or indict him for concealment of criminal proceeds. He also requested an investigation into the matter of Son paying his grandmother's hospital bills with criminal proceeds, which allegedly damaged her honor.

During the previous investigation, Son's criminal activity period was identified as from July 8, 2015, to March 4, 2018, and the statute of limitations for concealment of criminal proceeds extends until 2023, so additional punishment is possible if the charges are confirmed. The prosecution directed the police to investigate this case, and the police received related materials such as investigation records on the 10th of this month. A police official explained, "Since the original case investigation was conducted by the National Police Agency headquarters, we consulted with the prosecution and received the case transfer."

However, some express skepticism about this investigation. Punishment for operating the site has already been completed, and the 400 million won in criminal proceeds identified after Son's arrest has all been recovered. Since Son's father filed the accusation to prevent his son's extradition to the U.S., it is questionable whether there are any additional criminal charges. The National Police Agency stated, "Additional charges may be discovered during the investigation," and added, "We will conduct a strict investigation." The police are expected to examine whether Son has concealed any additional criminal proceeds.

The Cyber Investigation Division of the National Police Agency arrested Son in March 2018 through an international joint investigation and transferred him to the prosecution with a recommendation for detention and indictment. After supplementary investigation, the prosecution indicted him on charges of producing and distributing obscene materials under the Youth Protection Act and distributing obscene materials under the Information and Communications Network Act. Son was sentenced to two years in prison with a three-year probation in the first trial and was released, but in the second trial, he was sentenced to one year and six months in prison and was detained in court. He did not appeal to the Supreme Court, so his sentence was finalized in May last year, and his sentence expired on April 27 of this year.

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