[The Plaintiff Turned Detective]①

"Do you have any more evidence to prove that he is an accomplice?"

In November last year, inside an interrogation room at a police station in Seoul. The plaintiff representative, Lee Jongsu (alias, 65), broke into a cold sweat at the police officer's question. It felt like being handed homework. He recalled hearing that most recent fraud victims now hire private investigators to conduct thorough evidence collection. The police officer continued, "We don't really handle individual complaints." "We only conduct investigations that we initiate ourselves." And so, a long battle began.

The investigation log that Jongsu has collected over 936 days. The portrait photo is unrelated to this case.

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The case began with anxiety about retirement. He was tempted by advertisements promising "33% guaranteed returns" and "land compensation plots won at auction or public sale." Around 2021, he invested 200 million won of his retirement funds in Real Estate Company A. But something felt off. When the investment maturity date arrived in March 2023, no money was deposited. The company claimed it was a "temporary liquidity issue" and provided an extension agreement and a repayment memorandum.

At first, he thought it was just a delay. But after two months with no news, the group chat was in turmoil. Rumors of a "Ponzi scheme" spread among investors. He didn't want to believe it.

His fears became reality. On August 31, 2023, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency raided Company A's office. After more than a year, on May 20 last year, Company A's CEO, Park Hyungseok (alias), was arrested and indicted. Only then did he have no choice but to accept it. "I've been scammed."

After that, for two years and nine months, he found himself shuttling between the police, the prosecution, and the courts. The truth he learned belatedly was shocking. Park had five previous convictions for fraud. Around the time he founded the company in 2019, he had already received a one-year prison sentence with a two-year suspension from the Incheon District Court for fraud. It was hard to believe. "A five-time fraud convict started a real estate development corporation?" "Was I really deceived?"

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From this point on, Jongsu began acting like a detective. He had to find out what assets the company owned, who managed the corporate accounting books and where they were kept, and whether there were any signs of embezzlement. He joined the creditors' council. The company's assets were mortgaged under the names of executives' close associates. The management had tricked investors by claiming they needed to temporarily lift the collateral to win development projects, but in reality, a flurry of new mortgages had been registered. This meant there was no way to recover the money.

He also joined an online community of victims of similar financial fraud. Many plaintiffs there went as far as tailing, staking out, and even chasing key suspects. His lawyer advised that it would be best to first secure criminal convictions for the main participants through criminal complaints and then use those verdicts as evidence in civil lawsuits. Lee agreed.

On March 25 last year, he and other victims filed a group complaint with the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, identifying an accomplice who appeared to have orchestrated the scheme with the main perpetrator. The damages exceeded 500 billion won, and the government was focusing on cracking down on such illegal fundraising schemes. He expected a direct investigation by a major prosecutors' office. Jongsu saw a sign at the Seocho-dong Prosecutors' Office's civil affairs desk that read "Direct Investigation of Major Financial and Economic Cases." He hoped the powerful prosecution would take the case directly.

But the complaint was bounced around. The case was sent back to the police. The complaint filed with the Central District Prosecutors' Office was transferred to the Eastern District Prosecutors' Office and then to the Financial Crime Investigation Unit of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency. In July of the same year, he resubmitted the complaint to the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, but this time the case was moved to the local police station. He hired a lawyer and filed another complaint, including requests for additional raids, confirmation of the crime period, and the need to investigate accomplices. But on June 16, what he received was a decision not to refer the case for prosecution. The reason: "insufficient evidence."

The questions continued in court. The indictment against the main perpetrator only listed crimes committed between May 1, 2019, and April 28, 2023. Many victims suffered losses after May. The specific criminal acts were not clearly identified. He attended all 20 court hearings and took notes on the key issues.

The court asked the prosecution to amend the indictment, but the prosecutor in charge of the trial did not comply. After a hearing in February, Lee asked the prosecutor why. "We don't have investigative command authority, and if we ask the criminal division to conduct supplementary investigations and revise the crime list, it just creates more work. Expanding the scope would only prolong the trial," was the gist of the response. He felt defeated.

In the end, he took matters into his own hands. He obtained certified copies of the registry for 80 parcels of real estate across the country three times, and reconstructed the details of the ownership, mortgage, and joint collateral in Excel. He analyzed the crime list one by one using a magnifying glass that enlarged it six times. He compiled this information into a victim's statement and submitted it to the court. But his frustration only deepened. The information he could access was limited, and the documents he submitted had no evidentiary value.

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Last month, the prosecution sought a 25-year prison sentence for Park Hyungseok. However, ahead of the first trial verdict, there were reports that some investors were being persuaded to submit statements of non-punishment in exchange for priority repayment.

September 22, 2025, marks the 936th day since the victimization. Today, Lee is still struggling to escape from the real estate investment fraud. Yet questions remain. Did the police and prosecution faithfully carry out their investigative and prosecutorial duties? They say the adjustment of investigative powers between the police and prosecution is delaying the process, but what will happen if the Prosecutors' Office itself is abolished? Jongsu said,

"Unless it's a major case that makes the news, it feels like no one cares. At this point, I wish we could at least have an era where private lawsuits are possible, even if public prosecution isn't."