Impersonating Public Institutions With 'No-Show' Scam... Gang That Swindled KRW 600 Million in Pattaya Referred to Prosecution

Inducing Proxy Purchases by Impersonating Public Institutions, Stealing KRW 600 Million
Ten Organization Members Forwarded to Prosecutors, Eight Detained, Ringleader Still at Large

A criminal group that set up a call center at a resort in Pattaya, Thailand, impersonated domestic public institutions and committed a no-show scam totaling around KRW 600 million. The suspects have now been handed over to the prosecution.

The Financial Crime Investigation Unit of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency arrested the manager of the no-show fraud organization impersonating public institutions (second from the right) and other members in Pattaya, Thailand, on April 27. Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency

The Financial Crime Investigation Unit of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency announced on the 16th that it had detained and referred eight members of a fraud organization based in Pattaya, Thailand, including suspect A, to the prosecution on charges of joining and participating in a criminal organization, fraud, and violating the Electronic Financial Transactions Act. Two additional suspects have been referred without detention.

According to police, from February 24 to April 8 this year, suspect A and others impersonated representatives of public institutions such as the Korea Institute of Nuclear Nonproliferation and Control, universities, offices of education, correctional facilities, and city halls. They are accused of defrauding 22 domestic facility suppliers of about KRW 600 million. The police have secured KRW 57 million of the criminal proceeds through pre-indictment asset preservation measures.

The police investigation revealed that suspect A and his accomplices initially earned the trust of facility suppliers by placing large-scale orders while pretending to be from public institutions. They then deceived the victims by claiming, "If you purchase fire extinguishers and other items needed for fire safety inspections on our behalf, we will pay you the full cost, including the extra expenses." The victims were tricked into sending money to businesses specified by the perpetrators. These designated businesses were fake companies operated by the group, and, upon receiving the surrogate purchase funds, the scammers kept the money.

It was also determined that they secured bank accounts under false names for use in their crimes. Suspect A and others impersonated representatives of gambling websites such as "○○Lotto" and approached users, claiming, "If you want to be compensated for gambling losses through an insurance company, we need your loss records." They then induced the victims to open new bank accounts and obtained the account numbers and passwords. The police believe these unlawfully obtained accounts were used to receive proceeds from the no-show scams.

The group's operational base was a resort in Pattaya, Thailand. Around February, the Korean leader prepared call centers and accommodations for the group on the first to third floors of a resort and recruited members through part-time job sites and personal referrals. Some of the recruits were found to have criminal backgrounds as former gang members who had been active in the Gyeonggi Province area. The leader formed an organization with around 11 members, provided training on scam scenarios, and dispatched them to conduct the crimes. For successful recruitment of false bank accounts, a reward of KRW 3 million per case was set, and 10% of the no-show scam amount was given as an additional incentive. More bonuses were paid based on performance.

The leader kept the organization members' passports and phones used for the crimes separately and required constant reporting on their private lives and job performance. Members who violated work rules faced verbal abuse, threats, or even physical assault. To evade law enforcement detection, the leader divided members into teams of three, assigning each to a different floor of the resort, and restricted contact between teams to enhance security.

Lee Gyehyung, Head of the Second Phishing Fraud Investigation Unit at the Financial Crime Investigation Division of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, is giving a briefing on the crackdown of a no-show fraud group impersonating public institutions, operating based in Pattaya, Thailand, at the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency Mapo General Building on the morning of the 16th. Photo by Lee Ji-ye

At the end of March, the police received related intelligence and launched a joint investigation with Thai authorities, led by the Korean National Police Agency's Transnational Crime Special Response Task Force (TF). In about a month, the group members were apprehended locally, and from May to August, they were gradually extradited to Korea. The Korean leader who escaped the scene is still being pursued.

A police official stated, "Cases continue to occur where Koreans are lured into overseas phishing operations with promises of monthly earnings exceeding KRW 10 million and free room and board," and added, "Recently, there has been a sharp increase in no-show scams where scammers demand bank accounts under the pretext of compensating gambling or investment losses, or impersonate public institutions and universities to induce surrogate purchases. Everyone should exercise particular caution."

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