Mother and child posing as Itaewon disaster victims to get free meals, booked on fraud charges

Most Admit to Charges

On the 13th, volunteers and Yongsan District Office officials are organizing chrysanthemums and memorial messages left by citizens on the sidewalk in front of the Itaewon disaster site in Yongsan-gu, Seoul. Photo by Dongju Yoon doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Jang Sehee] A mother and son who impersonated victims' families of the Itaewon tragedy to receive cash and clothing donations at a memorial space were arrested by the police.

The Yongsan Police Station in Seoul announced that they booked a woman in her 50s, Ms. A, and her teenage son, Mr. B, on fraud charges yesterday at Samgakji Station for impersonating victims' families of the Itaewon tragedy.

According to the police, the mother and son are accused of claiming that the son died in the tragedy at the memorial space set up at Itaewon Station, receiving clothing, cash, and meals. It was also reported that actor Jung Woo-sung, who visited the site on the 10th, met them.

Yesterday, citizen media The Tamza and citizen media Mindeulle revealed the list of the deceased from the tragedy, exposing that they were not actually family members.

According to the police, it is known that most of the suspects have admitted to the charges.

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