Gang Dug a Tunnel Renting an Entire Motel to Steal Oil from Pipeline

Dug a 10m Tunnel with Shovel and Pickaxe for 50 Days
Arrested Just Before Stealing Oil... Sentenced to Prison

The group accused of renting an entire motel and digging a tunnel to siphon oil from a pipeline was sentenced to prison in the first trial.

On the 8th, the Criminal Division 12 of Daejeon District Court (Presiding Judge Na Sang-hoon) sentenced former employee A (65) of Korea Oil Pipeline Corporation, who was arrested and indicted for violating the Pipeline Safety Management Act, to four years in prison. Additionally, B (58), who was charged with the same offense along with three other accomplices involved in financing and operations, received prison sentences of two years, two years and six months, and three years respectively. Four other accomplices with lesser involvement were sentenced to one year and six months in prison with a three-year probation period.

Underground tunnel dug by Mr. A and others in the basement of a motel in Cheongju, Chungbuk
[Photo by Daejeon Police Agency, Yonhap News]

They were prosecuted for renting an entire lodging facility in Cheongju, Chungbuk around January 10, then breaking through the basement wall and digging a tunnel with shovels and pickaxes to siphon oil from the pipeline. A and others deceived the motel owner by claiming they would run a motel business and signed a lease for 4.5 million won per month.

Starting from May last year, A gathered accomplices by promising acquaintances he met through petroleum-related work a profit of 400 to 500 won per liter. The gathered group

divided roles into financiers, technicians for installing oil theft facilities, and excavation workers, first scouting the crime location. They then surveyed the pipeline burial site and meticulously prepared for the crime by drafting tunnel design blueprints. Notably, A, who had multiple prior convictions for similar crimes, planned the crime again just one month after his release, using knowledge gained while working as a technician at Korea Oil Pipeline Corporation.

In October last year, they rented a gas station in Okcheon, Chungbuk and attempted excavation once but gave up due to flooding in the tunnel. They then used the Cheongju lodging facility as their second crime base. A and others lived there for about 50 days, digging a tunnel approximately 10 meters long, reaching a point 30 cm from the pipeline. However, the crime was ultimately unsuccessful as they were arrested by police just before stealing the oil. The pipeline location they accessed was underground beside a four-lane national road with an average daily traffic of 66,000 vehicles, and was reportedly at risk of collapse due to ground subsidence.

The first trial court explained the sentencing by stating, "The social harm is significant, and the crime was planned and organized with multiple accomplices dividing roles, indicating very poor criminal nature. However, consideration was given to the fact that the crime was attempted but not completed."

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