Police Crack Down on China-Based Voice Phishing Crime Organization... 34 Arrested Including Face-to-Face Couriers

On the 29th, the Yongsan Police Station in Seoul announced that they had arrested 32 members of a voice phishing gang who impersonated prosecutors and financial institutions to extort approximately 3.2 billion won from victims. A delivery agent is seen placing cash into a locker at Yeoksam Station in Seoul. / Photo by Yongsan Police Station, Seoul

[Asia Economy Reporter Gong Byung-sun] A group involved in voice phishing crimes, who impersonated prosecutors and financial institutions to extort about 3.2 billion KRW from victims, has been arrested by the police. The organization, based in China, consisted of 34 members including cash collectors and couriers.

On the 29th, the Yongsan Police Station in Seoul announced that they had arrested 13 people, including a 47-year-old Chinese man A and a 42-year-old naturalized woman B, on charges of joining a criminal organization and fraud. Including 17 cash collectors and 15 secondary and tertiary couriers involved with them, a total of 34 people were apprehended.

According to the police, A and B recruited lower-level members and planned criminal activities under the direction of C (28), the Chinese overseas leader based in China. They deceived victims by impersonating financial institutions or investigative agencies such as the prosecution, then extorted cash through face-to-face meetings with the primary cash collectors.

The cash was transferred to China through several people. First, the primary cash collector received cash from the victim and handed it over to the secondary courier. Then, the secondary courier placed the cash in subway lockers, restrooms, or bicycle storage lockers, where the tertiary courier collected it and delivered it to the domestic leader. The domestic leader handed the cash to a money exchanger, who deposited it into a Chinese account managed by the overseas leader.

The police stated that there were 53 victims with a total damage of about 3.2 billion KRW. On average, each victim suffered about 60 million KRW in damages, with the largest single loss reaching 490 million KRW. The police explained that during the arrest process, they recovered 180 million KRW and promptly returned the full amount to the victims.

Going forward, the police plan to issue an arrest warrant for the overseas leader C, who has not yet been apprehended, and pursue his extradition through a red notice and international cooperation investigations. They also stated that investigations into couriers and money exchangers within the organization will continue.

A police official said, "Public institutions such as the prosecution, police, and Financial Supervisory Service never request financial or personal information under any circumstances," adding, "Recruitment for high-profit guaranteed part-time jobs is likely a recruitment for voice phishing cash collectors, and responding to such offers may lead to involvement in voice phishing crimes, so special caution is required."

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