Ran 'This' to Snap Up Postseason Tickets... Teen Who Pocketed 6 Million Won Finally Caught

Sold tickets above face value on secondhand trading platforms
Made about 6 million won in illicit profits from around 50 tickets
Revised National Sports Promotion Act imposes penalties regardless of automated-program use

Organized online ticket scalping continues even after an amended law regulating such transactions took effect. Police caught a teenager who used an automated program to buy large quantities of professional baseball postseason tickets and resell them above face value for a profit.

The Cyber Investigation Division of the Busan Metropolitan Police Agency said on the 31st that it had apprehended a teenage boy, identified as A, on suspicion of illegally purchasing and selling professional baseball postseason tickets.

A is suspected of using an automated program to buy about 50 tickets from the official ticketing site in 12 transactions on October 15 and 16. He then resold the tickets nine times through a secondhand trading platform. A police investigation found that he set prices at three to six times face value and made about 6 million won in illicit profits.

Police launched the investigation at the request of the Korea Sports Promotion Foundation. They plan to notify the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism of the investigation results so that follow-up measures, including the imposition of administrative surcharges, can be taken. Police also plan to continue investigating sellers of automated programs.

Earlier, on the 20th, the National Police Agency said it would investigate people suspected of illegally reselling professional baseball postseason tickets on secondhand trading platforms and elsewhere, following a request for an investigation from the Korea Sports Promotion Foundation.

The revised National Sports Promotion Act, which took effect on August 28, expanded regulations that had previously focused on ticket scalping involving automated programs. It bans illegal purchases and sales for resale, regardless of whether an automated program is used.

Accordingly, it is prohibited to obtain tickets for resale by bypassing or interfering with the purchase procedures set by the original seller. Also subject to punishment is the habitual or commercial sale or brokerage of tickets above the purchase price without the original seller's consent.

Those who illegally purchase or sell tickets may face up to one year in prison or a fine of up to 10 million won. Illegal sellers may be subject to administrative surcharges of up to 50 times the sale amount, and the proceeds of crime may also be confiscated or collected.

However, reselling a ticket that an individual bought for personal use on a one-off basis is not automatically punishable; the conduct must meet requirements set by law, such as being habitual or commercial in nature.

Since the amended law took effect, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism has stepped up enforcement, including expanding reports of ticket scalping and requests for investigations. The government operates an integrated reporting website for scalping involving performances and sports and accepts reports of illegal transactions.

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