'Three Women Jeonse Fraud' Mother Sentenced to 10 Years, Collapses and Screams in Court

Kim Mo-shi (58), the mother of the so-called 'Three Mothers Jeonse Fraud Group' who committed 'zero-capital gap investment' Jeonse fraud in the Seoul metropolitan area, was sentenced to a heavy prison term. Immediately after the sentencing, Kim collapsed in her seat and received emergency treatment.

On the 12th, Judge Lee Jun-gu of the Seoul Central District Court Criminal Division 18 sentenced Kim, who was indicted on charges including fraud, to 10 years in prison, the same as the prosecution's demand.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

The court stated, "From the beginning, there was no intention or ability to return the rental deposit, but the defendant deceived the victims to gain financial benefits, and played an essential role in this process," adding, "Jeonse fraud is a serious crime that shakes the foundation of the lives of vulnerable groups such as the working class and young adults starting out in society."

Furthermore, the court said, "The defendant consistently made unacceptable excuses such as denying any deception or claiming the amount of damage could not be calculated, showing no remorse," and "did not make efforts to restore the damages, and when some victims vacated after receiving deposit subrogation payments, the defendant focused solely on economic gains by renting the villas to short-term monthly tenants."

Upon hearing the sentence, Kim collapsed in the defendant's seat and screamed. She regained consciousness after receiving emergency measures such as cardiopulmonary resuscitation from court security officers.

Attorney Gong Hyeong-jin, representing the victims, said, "I understand the ruling as a strict punishment to serve as a deterrent against professional gap investment fraud by imposing the full 10-year prison term requested by the prosecution," but added, "From the victims' perspective, financial recovery is the most important. Legislators need to pay attention to this issue."

"Currently, most victims have not recovered their money. Many are forced to continue living as they are," he added.

Earlier, Kim was brought to trial on charges of embezzling about 18.3 billion won in deposits from 85 tenants after purchasing about 500 villas in the Seoul metropolitan areas of Gangseo-gu and Gwanak-gu under the names of her two daughters, aged 34 and 31, using Jeonse deposits since 2017.

It was investigated that she colluded with new villa sales agents to recruit tenants and received Jeonse deposits higher than the sales price. Also, she took part of the money as rebates and paid the sales price to the building owners, buying villas without using her own money and continuing gap investments.

Kim was additionally indicted along with her daughters after the prosecution's investigation revealed other Jeonse fraud charges, and they are currently on trial at the same court under Criminal Division 26.

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