'Jeonse Fraud Earth-End Pursuit' Shouted by Yoon... Victims Say "Empty Gangjeong"

President Yoon Announces Strong Measures Against Jeonse Fraud
Jeonse Victims Say "The Important Thing Now Is Victim Recovery"

Regarding the recent surge in jeonse fraud, President Yoon Suk-yeol announced a tough response, stating he would "track down the perpetrators to the ends of the earth," and the government held a joint briefing to declare an 'indefinite crackdown' policy. However, the victims themselves criticized the government's announcement as "all show and no substance." Although the government claimed to have confiscated over 100 billion won from the so-called 'Villa King,' the victims have yet to receive any compensation.

On the 2nd, Ahn Sang-mi, Chairperson of the National Countermeasure Committee for Jeonse Fraud and Empty Jeonse Victims, pointed out on MBC's 'Kim Jong-bae's Focus' that "what is important now is the recovery of the victims, but since there is no sign of recovery, I don't understand why this announcement was made at this point in time."

Victims of jeonse fraud and empty jeonse are participating in a relay speech on the 25th at a sit-in in front of the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, urging for proper resolution of jeonse fraud and empty jeonse issues. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

The Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, and the National Police Agency held a joint briefing at the Government Seoul Office the day before, announcing an 'indefinite crackdown' policy on jeonse fraud, stating, "We will unite government-wide capabilities to strictly enforce crackdowns without a time limit." The police have arrested 1,765 suspects (5,568 individuals) related to jeonse fraud over 14 months since July last year, and the amount seized and confiscated totals 116.3 billion won.

However, Chairperson Ahn pointed out that only a small portion of the 116.3 billion won confiscated has been returned to the victims. She explained, "Most of the confiscated funds are probably from the Incheon case, but in cases like Incheon, the revealed amounts are all tied up in mortgages and will be paid out that way," adding, "In reality, no money has been returned to the victims."

She emphasized that tracking 'hidden funds' is necessary to return money to the victims. She said, "All 52 suspects involved must have their assets traced, but currently, only about 18 people who have been indicted as a criminal organization are being tracked," adding, "Therefore, there is practically no support fund that can be restored to the victims."

The government also announced that for the Incheon Michuhol-gu 'Construction King' case, the first to apply the 'criminal organization crime' charge in a jeonse fraud case, the procedure for confiscating 9.2 billion won has been completed. However, Chairperson Ahn criticized this as "a superficial measure," emphasizing, "It only fattens the banks now. Investigations must be conducted into funds that have been transferred under other names or handed over to acquaintances."

Following President Yoon's request at the Cabinet meeting on the 30th of last month, urging the prosecution and police to "track down and punish jeonse fraudsters and their accomplices to the ends of the earth," the government has continuously announced a tough stance. Nevertheless, jeonse fraud continues to occur steadily.

Recently, large-scale jeonse fraud cases have occurred in Daejeon and Suwon, and on this day, a man in his 50s was arrested by the police in Mokpo, Jeollanam-do, for exploiting the jeonse housing rental system intended for vulnerable groups to commit jeonse fraud.

The problem, according to Chairperson Ahn, is a 'systemic failure.' She stated, "This fraud has occurred due to past systemic failures, and the current crackdown is happening after many victims have already suffered."

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