Police Take Strict Action Against Livelihood Crimes... Voice Phishing Losses Cut by Half

Public Safety Achievements Announced in the First Year of the Lee Jaemyung Administration

The police have evaluated that they achieved significant results over the past year in responding to transnational crimes such as voice phishing and drug-related offenses. In particular, the amount of damage caused by voice phishing has been reduced by half so far this year.

The National Police Agency announced the results of its public safety efforts over the first year of the Lee Jaemyung administration on June 4. The agency explained that, as a result of reallocating 1,907 riot police officers to frontline departments for investigating crimes affecting people's livelihoods and crime prevention, previously vulnerable areas such as transnational crimes and the spread of false information are being effectively addressed.

Yoo Jaesung, Acting Commissioner of the National Police Agency, is performing the national ceremony at the National Police Agency's work report in January this year. Photo by Jo Yongjun

The most notable result is in the response to voice phishing. Between January and April this year, there were 4,739 reported cases of voice phishing, a 43% decrease from 8,268 cases during the same period last year. The amount of financial damage was 222.5 billion won, a 48% reduction compared to 426.1 billion won in the same period last year—almost halved. This is the result of launching the Integrated Response Team for Telecommunications and Financial Fraud in October last year, which broke down inter-agency barriers and enabled public-private collaboration in prevention and investigation efforts.

The police also took the lead in eradicating transnational crimes that cross borders. By strengthening responses to crimes such as scams and drug offenses occurring across borders, 391 suspects were apprehended locally in Southeast Asia between January and April this year. In addition, 316 fugitives were repatriated. These figures represent a 3.1-fold and 2.4-fold increase, respectively, compared to the same period last year. In March of this year, the police extradited “Telegram Worldwide” Park Wangyeol (47), who was imprisoned in a Philippine prison, and on May 1, repatriated “Telegram Cheongdam Boss” Choi Byungmin (51), a supply source who had been hiding in Thailand.

In particular, to respond to the transnationalization and online nature of drug-related crimes, the police have expanded dedicated investigation units and carried out intensive crackdowns, arresting 5,341 online drug offenders last year. Moving forward, the police plan to refine the relevant systems to ensure the undercover investigation system is established early, and to further expand and enhance international cooperation frameworks.

The dedicated investigation team for secondary victimization, which was launched at police headquarters in July last year, is also achieving meaningful results. The team has responded firmly to the spread of false information that defames victims and bereaved families of incidents such as the Sewol ferry disaster, the Itaewon crowd crush, and airplane crashes, arresting three suspects involved. A total of 2,487 posts related to secondary victimization have also been deleted or blocked.

Responding to relationship-based crimes, such as the stalking and murder case in Namyangju, Gyeonggi Province in March this year, remains a painful area. The police plan to maintain a strict response policy toward perpetrators, including detention in holding cells and applying for arrest warrants within a week. At the same time, they are working to ensure the safety of victims by interlinking electronic ankle bracelets and smartwatches.

Yoo Jaesung, Acting Commissioner of the National Police Agency, stated, "The past year has been a period of innovation in the public safety system and efforts on the ground for change and progress," adding, "We will focus all police activities on protecting precious lives and property."

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