"Special Supply of Gangnam Apartment for 700 Million Won"... Fraudster Impersonating LH Employees, Scamming 20 Billion Won from 100 People, Arrested and Indicted

A fraudster who impersonated an employee of Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) and deceived over 100 victims by promising to sell apartments in Gangnam at a low price, embezzling about 20 billion won, has been brought to trial.

On the 10th, the 8th Criminal Division of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office (Chief Prosecutor Hong Wan-hee) announced that a man in his 40s, Seo, was arrested and indicted the day before on charges including fraud under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes, fraud, forgery of private documents, and use of forged private documents.

Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, Seocho-dong, Seoul. Photo by Choi Seok-jin

According to the prosecution, Seo is accused of impersonating an LH investment attraction advisor from April 2021 to June this year, deceiving victims by claiming that "with a recommendation letter from the advisor, one can receive a special supply of an apartment worth about 3 billion won in the Gangnam area for 700 million won," and embezzling about 20 billion won from over 100 victims under the pretext of down payments and other fees.

Prosecutors' investigation revealed that Seo had no connection with LH, and the apartments he claimed were subject to special supply were completely unrelated to LH.

When victims protested, Seo reportedly rented monthly rental apartments with the embezzled money and temporarily provided them as if they were apartments receiving special supply, thereby deceiving the victims.

The prosecution stated that victims suffered damages ranging from 100 million won to as much as 1 billion won.

Investigations into accomplices, including a real estate developer and a real estate agent, are currently ongoing by the police.

A prosecution official said, "The prosecution will continue to strictly investigate real estate-related offenders who disrupt the real estate market and threaten the peaceful lives of ordinary citizens by exploiting their hopes of owning a home, and will do its best to ensure that appropriate punishments are imposed corresponding to their crimes."

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