"Fraud Ring Posed as Authorities to Steal 3.47 Billion Won in Checks... Voice Phishing Gang Referred to Prosecution"

A voice phishing ring that impersonated prosecutors or the Financial Supervisory Service to steal large sums in checks has been handed over to the prosecution.

On April 15, the Seoul Gangdong Police Station announced that it had arrested and referred three voice phishing couriers, including individual A, to the prosecution for violating the Act on the Recovery of Damages for Communication Fraud. Four other individuals involved in collecting the stolen funds, including individual B, were referred without detention.

A check worth 870 million won seized by the police during the arrest process. Gangdong Police Station, Seoul

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According to the police, from March 6 to March 31, A and others allegedly received instructions from a voice phishing organization through Telegram and other channels, and stole checks worth a total of 3.467 billion won from 10 victims.

It was confirmed that they delivered or transferred the criminal proceeds obtained by diverting the checks to higher-level members of the organization.

The police launched their investigation after receiving a report on March 6 that a victim, after receiving a phishing call saying "Your bank account appears to be linked to a crime, so you must withdraw all your cash for verification," handed over a check worth 157 million won.

During the arrest, the police seized checks worth 870 million won and identified three victims who had handed them over, returning the checks to them. These victims were unaware of their losses until being contacted by the police. In some cases, victims handed over checks worth about 1.7 billion won under the pretense of "high-return stock investments."

A police official emphasized, "It is 100% a scam if someone impersonates an investigative or public institution over the phone and demands cash withdrawals for the purpose of account verification. In particular, there have been a significant number of recent cases in which large sums of money were withdrawn as checks and handed over, so the public should exercise special caution."

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