Gyeongnam Police Agency Arrests Two Office-tel Prostitution Operators ... Focused Crackdown on Prostitution Underway

Gyeongsangnam-do Police Agency.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Hwang Du-yeol] Two business owners who brokered illegal prostitution in a rented officetel have been sent to the prosecution.

The Gyeongnam Provincial Police Agency announced on the 24th that they sent two business owners who employed women to operate prostitution businesses in eight officetel units rented for three years in Sangnam-dong, Changwon City, on charges of violating the Act on the Punishment of Acts of Prostitution.

According to the police, the suspects gathered customers through internet advertisements from April 2019 and brokered prostitution at eight pre-rented officetel units for 150,000 KRW each.

The suspects were caught during business operations on the 16th and were investigated on charges of 'prostitution brokerage' and 'prostitution advertisement.'

'Prostitution brokerage' is punishable by up to seven years in prison or a fine of up to 70 million KRW, while 'prostitution advertisement' is punishable by up to three years in prison or a fine of up to 30 million KRW.

The police applied for seizure and confiscation preservation before indictment for approximately 230 million KRW in criminal proceeds earned by the suspects.

The advertising sites used for prostitution have been blocked, and the officetel owner was notified to prevent the premises from being used as a prostitution venue.

A police official stated, "With the easing of social distancing measures, prostitution businesses linked to online sites are expected to increase rapidly. Therefore, from early May to the end of June, a special crackdown period on prostitution has been designated, and intensive operations are underway."

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