"Requested Help from Private Investigators, Ended Up Blackmailed"... Gang Who Extorted 100 Million Won Arrested and Sent to Prosecutors

Private Investigators Conspired With Data Leaker to Extort Money
Telegram Defamation Channel Operator Also Arrested
Head of Illegal Loan Company, the Victim, Separately Detained on Additional Charges

A group of private investigators who extorted approximately 100 million won from the head of an illegal private loan company—after the head requested their help in retrieving leaked client information from a former employee—have been handed over to police custody while under arrest. During the investigation, it was also revealed that the head of the illegal loan company had brokered unlawful loans and was separately arrested by the police on additional charges.

On May 7, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency Regional Crime Investigation Unit announced that four individuals have been arrested and forwarded to the prosecution on joint blackmail charges: Mr. A (33), a former employee who left the illegal private loan company; Mr. B (31), a private investigator; and Mr. C (26), the operator of a Telegram defamation channel (a channel that exposes personal information to disgrace individuals). One additional employee of the private investigation agency has been forwarded without detention on the same charges. The victim in this case, Mr. D (34), the head of the illegal private loan company, has been separately detained on charges including violations of the Loan Business Act.

Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, Gwangyeok Investigation Unit, Mapo-gu, Seoul. Photo by Yonhap News

According to the police, after being notified of his dismissal, Mr. A illegally took out client loan data from the illegal private loan company and extorted 80 million won from Mr. D in exchange for deleting the files. Mr. B and other accomplices conspired with Mr. A, extorting additional money from Mr. D, while Mr. C participated by posting photos of Mr. D and his spouse on Telegram and received 30 million won in exchange for deleting the posts.

Mr. D, upon realizing that Mr. A had stolen the data during his resignation process, commissioned the private investigation agency to retrieve the USB drive containing the information. However, Mr. B and others met with Mr. A, confirmed that the extracted data included illegal loan information, and then conspired to threaten and extort money from Mr. D.

The operator of a Telegram "Parkje Room" (a channel that publicly exposes personal information to shame individuals) posted personal information of the CEO of an illegal private loan company and their family with the intent to extort money. Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency

During the investigation, it was additionally revealed that Mr. C, the operator of the defamation channel, had posted false videos and personal information of women. Mr. C also created a cryptocurrency channel, laundering criminal proceeds as virtual assets for a fee. The police have added charges against Mr. C for violations of the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Sexual Crimes, the Act on Specified Financial Information, and the Act on Regulation and Punishment of Criminal Proceeds Concealment.

The victim in this case, Mr. D, has been detained for running an illegal private loan company from December 2023 to May of last year, brokering unlawful loans totaling approximately 48 billion won to about 4,000 people and collecting 5.1 billion won in commissions.

A police official stated, "This case illustrates how seeking help from a private investigation agency to resolve issues caused by illegal activities can instead make one a target of further crimes such as blackmail and extortion. In the case of the Telegram defamation channel, the anonymity was exploited to publicly shame victims, intensify psychological harm, and extort money—thus linking to yet another series of illegal acts."

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