The End of Rolex's 'Ji-in Chance'... It Was a 24 Million Won Scam

Rolex Watch Discounted Purchase Scam with Proxy, Provided Receipt of Transfer Confirmation and Disappeared... Additional Victims Reported

An incident occurred where a store employee who received tens of millions of won claiming to purchase a Swiss luxury watch Rolex at a discounted price suddenly disappeared.

According to the police on the 23rd, victim Mr. A recently filed a fraud complaint against Mr. B, who fled after receiving 24 million won to purchase a Rolex watch on his behalf.

Rolex with Premiums Circulating... Encounter with Employee While Trying to Buy at Regular Price

In May, Mr. A inquired around to purchase a Rolex at the regular price. At that time, Rolex, which had supply disruptions, caused a shortage both domestically and internationally, triggering an "open-run chaos." It is known that the resale price carried a premium almost at the regular price level.

Then, he was introduced to Mr. B, who worked at a watch store including Rolex at a department store in Seoul. Mr. B hinted, "The watch store where I work is connected with Rolex, so I can get a watch at a slightly cheaper price around mid to late July."

Accordingly, Mr. A transferred about 13 million won to Mr. B for the watch price. However, when it was time to receive the watch, Mr. B suddenly contacted Mr. A saying, "A colleague working at the same store was caught after buying and reselling a Rolex watch," and promised to return the money. Eventually, Mr. A received a refund immediately and his trust in Mr. B actually increased.

"Watches Arriving in November" Inducing Additional Purchase

Messages exchanged between the watch store employee and the victim.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

Still having regrets, Mr. A asked Mr. B again about purchasing a Rolex in September, and Mr. B offered an employee discount price. When Mr. A transferred 12 million won, Mr. B said, "A few more watches will arrive around November," and asked if he was interested in purchasing.

To buy a watch for his wife as well, Mr. A visited Mr. B’s store, transferred an additional 12 million won, and even received a 'receipt confirmation.' The watch pickup date was the 14th of last month.

However, Mr. B postponed the pickup date by one day to the 15th and disappeared without answering calls or text messages on that day. When contacting the store where Mr. B worked, it was learned that he had been absent without leave for six days.

Fraud Complaint Filed... Store Says "Will Take Responsibility"

Rolex Submariner Oyster. [Image source= Rolex]

Mr. A said to Yonhap News, "I trusted him because he said he was an employee related to Rolex and transferred the payment, but how could he disappear like this?" and added, "I sent a large sum of money and waited anxiously for over a month."

He continued, "I understand that Mr. B took not only my money but also money from others and fled," and lamented, "I have contacted Mr. B’s family, but Mr. B still does not answer calls."

The representative of the store where Mr. B worked said, "I am very sorry that such an incident happened," and added, "I understand that Mr. B’s family is planning to repay the damages. If there is any legal responsibility the company must bear, we will not hide and will take responsibility."

Mr. A filed a fraud complaint against Mr. B at the police station. The police, who received the complaint, said, "We will thoroughly investigate the case."

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