Said They Would Buy a Rolex but Suddenly Fled... Three Accomplices Sentenced to Prison

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Jin-hyung] Tried to wear a Rolex watch but ended up in handcuffs.

A (25), who was released from Busan Detention Center after serving time for fraud, this time conspired to commit theft. He devised a plan based on the fact that precious metals are frequently traded on online secondhand trading sites.

There was a lookout, a thief, and a driver. They divided the roles accordingly. There were three accomplices in total, and the ringleader A was subject to aggravated punishment if caught during his probation period, but he did not care.

On the day of the crime, April 20, in front of an apartment in Jung-gu, Seoul, A and B (23) watched the surroundings from a rented car they had prepared in advance.

C (23), who got out of the car, approached the transaction partner who had previously contacted him to buy a Rolex watch worth about 20 million won. After receiving the watch and checking the victim’s attention, he took advantage of the victim’s momentary negligence and ran straight toward the vehicle.

Despite the meticulous plan, they failed. In their haste to escape, the watch was dropped on the ground. A, who did not have a driver’s license, stepped on the accelerator and left the scene in a hurry.

They were prosecuted on charges of extorting goods worth about 27 million won over four occasions using this method.

A and B were sentenced to 1 year and 6 months in prison, and C was sentenced to 1 year in prison with a 2-year probation.

Judge Park Sang-soo of the Gwangju District Court Criminal Division 8 said, "They systematically divided the crime and stole or attempted to steal high-priced precious metals multiple times, which is very serious in nature."

Among them, B is also charged with forgery of official documents.

He visited a sashimi restaurant in Buk-gu, Pohang-si, Gyeongbuk, showed the owner a forged official document in the name of the Jeju Provincial Police Agency Chief, and deceived him by saying, "I have to pay a fine, so please lend me money."

The document was a "Decision on Disposition for Assault and Trespassing," and it included an image resembling the chief’s seal.

He persuaded the owner by saying, "I will work hard as an employee and repay 1 million won every month," and collected several million won. There was no actual fine to be paid, and the money was used to cover other debts. Using this method, he embezzled a total of 7.5 million won over five occasions.

The court stated, "Despite ongoing investigations and trials for forgery of official documents, he did not repent and even committed special theft. Although the amount involved in the fraud through forgery of official documents was not large and some damages were recovered, he was not forgiven by the victims, so a prison sentence was inevitable," explaining the sentencing rationale.

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