Busan's College Student Version of 'Extreme Job'... The Criminal Caught by 3 College Students?

Created Fake Money Bundles Like in a Movie to Catch Voice Phishing Gang Members
Uncovered the Identity of a 'Loan Application App' Posing as Low-Interest Refinancing Loan and Solved It Directly
Busan Nambu Police Awarded Commendations and Reward Mon

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yong-woo] Twin brothers and a friend, these university students have a combined loan debt of about 8 million won.

In the 'COVID-19 era,' part-time jobs were unsatisfactory, and life was tough trying to repay the loan interest and principal in installments.

The three of them packed a shopping bag with 8 million won and left the house on the afternoon of August 13.

In fact, they packed a fake bundle of money to deceive someone, pretending it was a large sum of 8 million won, but there was not even a 10-won coin inside.

Their unexpected 'scheme' began with a phone call.

They were told that they would be given a loan with a lower interest rate if they handed over the existing loan amount of 8 million won directly to the 'employee' sent by the caller.

The offer to pay off the existing loan and get a new loan with a lower interest rate was tempting.

The proposal sounded slick, but these were not university students who would be easily fooled. They had met the wrong person.

They pretended to be deceived, saying "Yes, yes," and went to the site with the shopping bag as if they had withdrawn cash.

When the 'employee' came to the agreed location in Nam-gu, Daeyeon-dong, Busan to collect the money, the three grabbed him and immediately called 112. It was a movie-like scene handing over the voice phishing gang member to the police.

The university students initially complied with the voice phishing gang’s demand to install a loan application app.

However, they felt something was off. During the call, suspicion grew. While verifying with the existing loan company using another phone, they realized the other party was a voice phishing gang.

Their sense of justice kicked in. They lured the criminal to the scene and arrested the 'employee' gang member on the spot.

The Busan Southern Police Station quickly acted on the case where the three university students used their wit to directly apprehend the voice phishing 'face-to-face extortion agent' at the scene.

They took custody of the suspect from the students and arrested him. Then they launched an investigation to dismantle the entire organization.

College students who directly caught voice phishing crime organization members and handed them over to the police. The Busan Southern Police Station awarded them certificates of commendation and reward money for reporting.
[Image source=Busan Police]

The Busan Southern Police Station presented the three university students with a commendation from the police chief and a reward for reporting. They also took time to express gratitude for their brave actions.

After taking custody, the Busan Southern Police Station arrested Mr. A, who acted as the face-to-face extortion agent for the voice phishing gang, on August 16.

Mr. A has so far collected a total of 180 million won from nine victims and passed it up to the 'upper echelon.'

The police said, "Fortunately, in this case, the students realized it was voice phishing and did not suffer any losses. However, once the malicious app sent by the voice phishing gang is installed, most cases lead to money being handed over, so victims are almost inevitable."

If you have installed a loan application app (call interception app), it is essential to use another phone without the app installed to call the official phone number or visit a bank branch to verify.

"If you are asked over the phone by a financial institution or public agency to transfer money or hand over cash, it is 100% voice phishing."

This is a phrase the police repeat until your ears hurt. However, such simple basic principles for preventing phishing crimes often sound like outdated slogans to those in urgent need of money.

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