"Police Say 'Send Money'""I'm a Police Officer"…The Truth Behind the ATM Confrontation?

Jincheon Police Station Lieutenant Jin Haeseong Prevents Voice Phishing Just in Time

"I'm talking to the police right now."

"Sir, I am the police officer."

In front of an ATM at a bank in Jincheon, Chungbuk, two men had a scuffle while having this conversation. One man, seeing an elderly person trying to send a large sum of money to the 'police' on the phone, claimed to be a 'police officer' himself and tried to stop the transfer.

It turned out that the 'police' on the phone was a voice phishing scammer, and the man who stopped the transfer was a real police officer who had just finished his shift and came to the ATM for personal errands. The officer sensed the suspicious call and prevented the victim from being scammed.

Officer Jin is quietly informing bank teller staff about the elderly person's involvement in a voice phishing scam. [Image source=Captured from the National Police Agency YouTube]

According to the National Police Agency on the 18th, the protagonist of the story is Lieutenant Jin Haeseong of the Chopyeong Police Substation, Jincheon Police Station, Chungbuk. On August 1st at 10 a.m., Lieutenant Jin was heading out after finishing his shift and went to the ATM to withdraw money when he happened to witness an elderly man making a phone call.

The situation was captured on the bank's closed-circuit television (CCTV). The footage shows the elderly man next to Lieutenant Jin opening his bankbook and receiving instructions over the phone to attempt a transfer. Hearing the conversation, Lieutenant Jin became suspicious and tapped the elderly man on the shoulder, warning, "This sounds like a dangerous call." However, the elderly man ignored the warning, insisting that the person on the phone was the police. He believed the voice phishing scammer's claim that "the bankbook is involved in a crime, but if you send money, we will protect you."

Convinced it was a voice phishing scam, Lieutenant Jin tried to stop the elderly man by taking his bankbook, but the man did not trust him. Instead, he went inside the bank to withdraw an even larger amount of money. Lieutenant Jin followed him inside and quietly informed the bank staff that the man was being targeted by a voice phishing scam. The bank staff delayed the withdrawal and contacted the police.

Uniformed officers arrived at the scene, resolving the situation. The officers told the elderly man, "Investigation agencies never ask for money," and removed malicious apps installed on his phone. Thanks to this, the elderly man was able to protect his assets. Lieutenant Jin was off duty and doing farm work when he stopped by the ATM and witnessed the incident.

Meanwhile, it was recently revealed that a police officer who took a stroller out in front of his house on his day off discovered a voice phishing victim and prevented further damage.

Sergeant Yoo Changwook of the Gwanggyo Police Substation, Suwon Nambu Police Station, Gyeonggi Province, was taking a walk with his child in a stroller in front of his home in Bongdam-eup, Hwaseong City, on the afternoon of October 29th at around 6:30 p.m. when he noticed a suspicious scene. A young man was sitting on a bench in front of a convenience store, organizing a large number of gift cards. Sergeant Yoo, paying close attention, saw the same man enter another convenience store about 20 minutes later and sensed his involvement in a crime. He followed the man into the store with the stroller. The man was about to purchase 2 million won worth of the same gift cards.

Sergeant Yoo Chang-wook is pushing a stroller and entering a convenience store, asking about the reason for purchasing a gift card.
[Image source=Provided by Gyeonggi Nambu Police Agency, Yonhap News]

Sergeant Yoo identified himself as a police officer and asked the man why he was buying the cards. The man confessed, "A prosecutor's office official called and said I was suspected as an accomplice in a fraud crime and told me to buy gift cards and send the codes to prove my account was not frozen." He had already purchased 1.5 million won worth of gift cards and sent the codes. Confirming it was a voice phishing scam, Sergeant Yoo stopped the man from making additional purchases and immediately reported to 112.

Sergeant Yoo said, "At first, I suspected this man was a voice phishing withdrawal agent and followed him, but I found out he was actually a victim of the phishing gang. Even though I was with my child, I couldn't just ignore a situation that seemed to be connected to a crime."

The National Police Agency disclosed this story on its official YouTube channel on the 6th, urging citizens to be cautious about voice phishing crimes.

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