During the COVID-19 Era, Billion-Won Fraud Using Secondhand Goods Bait... Organization Leader Forced Repatriation

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] The ringleader of a fraud organization that deceived hundreds of victims by pretending to sell used items such as wireless vacuum cleaners online from overseas bases and embezzled over 300 million won has been arrested by the police.

The National Police Agency announced on the 30th that it apprehended two people, including the ringleader A, on charges of fraud and forcibly repatriated them from Vietnam to South Korea. From July 2018 to April 2020, A and others posted false listings on online secondhand trading sites claiming to sell used items such as cameras, earphones, humidifiers, and air purifiers. They are accused of embezzling money by not delivering the goods after receiving advance payments. So far, about 600 victims have been identified, with damages amounting to approximately 340 million won.

The Suwon Jungbu Police Station in Gyeonggi Province, which handled the case, launched an investigation following victim reports and arrested five domestic accomplices out of eight members of the organization in October 2020. Four of them were detained. The Suwon Jungbu Police Station requested cooperative investigation from the International Cooperation Division of the National Police Agency for the ringleader residing overseas. The police issued an Interpol Red Notice for the ringleader and have been tracking him. After confirming his entry and stay in Vietnam, they cooperated with local public security and arrested him at his hideout on the 15th.

According to the quarantine policies of both countries, the police received custody of the suspects from local public security in the airport security zone without entering the country. Kang Gitaek, head of the Interpol International Cooperation Division, said, "This repatriation is the result of thoroughly tracking a criminal organization targeting ordinary citizens who frequently use online secondhand trading amid the economic downturn caused by COVID-19," adding, "We will continue to respond actively through cooperation with Interpol and foreign police to combat the increasing overseas-based crimes."

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