Prosecutor's Investigator Who Fled to Avoid "Jeonse Scam" Investigation Arrested in the Philippines

A current prosecutor's investigator, who fled overseas after being accused of a "jeonse" rental scam, was apprehended in a foreign country after approximately six months.

Hwaseong Dongtan Police Station in Gyeonggi Province announced on April 16 that it had arrested Investigator A, affiliated with the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, who had been accused of fraud.

Investigator A is a landlord who owned more than 70 residential officetels and other properties in the Hwaseong Dongtan New Town area. He is suspected of receiving "jeonse" deposits from multiple tenants and then failing to return them.

Tenants filed a series of complaints, each claiming that they had not received their security deposits of around 100 million won after their contracts expired. So far, a total of 20 complaints have been filed with the police, and the damages are estimated to be about 2.6 billion won.

After receiving text messages from tenants warning of legal action, Investigator A anticipated imminent lawsuits, submitted a request for leave of absence to the prosecution, and departed for the Philippines on September 27 last year.

The police invalidated Investigator A’s passport and requested an Interpol Red Notice to track him down, while also cooperating with the Philippine Korean Desk.

After this investigation, Investigator A was apprehended by local police on April 15 at a hideout in Cebu, Philippines.

A police official stated that, after discussions with Philippine authorities, Investigator A would be promptly extradited to Korea and that a strict investigation would follow.

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