"'What Are You Going to Do About My Hair?' Tattooed Man Goes on Rampage, Extorts Money from Salons"

Falsely claimed, "I developed scalp problems after hair dyeing"
"Claims adjuster, SNS exposé"... Threatened owners while flaunting tattoos

A man in his 30s has been arrested for repeatedly extorting money from beauty salon owners by threatening them with claims that he developed scalp problems after receiving a treatment, despite never having received one.

Photo unrelated to the specific content of the article. Pixabay

Gwangju Seobu Police Station said on November 13 that it had arrested the man, identified only as A, on suspicion of extortion.

A is suspected of visiting around 10 beauty salons in Gwangju between March 29 and August 23, wearing clothes that exposed tattoos on both arms, and threatening the owners while demanding, "I developed scalp problems after getting my hair dyed two months ago, so refund the cost of the treatment and my medical expenses." Investigators found that he extorted a total of 750,000 won from 10 victims.

A pressured the owners, saying, "I have to leave the country tomorrow, so pay me in cash right now," and, "If you handle this formally through a claims adjuster, it will cost you a lot more."

He also returned to salons from which he had already obtained money and demanded additional payments. A extorted money by threatening, "I also received another treatment at the time, and I even had psychiatric treatment expenses. If you don't compensate me, I'll post about this on social media (SNS) and ruin your business."

The salon owners told police, "We were afraid that the tattooed man might suddenly turn violent while only women were in the store," and, "We were also worried that rumors about treatment side effects might spread in front of customers and seriously affect our business, so we paid him to make him leave."

Gwangju Western Police Station. Yonhap News.

Police received a petition on September 1 stating that "a tattooed man demanded money loudly for 30 to 40 minutes without even receiving a treatment." Believing there could be more victims, they expanded the investigation.

Police surveyed salons in the jurisdiction and confirmed additional cases at nine salons. A, who had been evading capture while using a mobile phone registered under someone else's name and having no fixed residence, was arrested on November 9 in the parking lot of a supermarket in Ssangchon-dong, Seo-gu, Gwangju.

Police sought a warrant for A's arrest, determining that he had no fixed residence and posed a flight risk. The court issued the warrant on November 11 after a pre-arrest suspect examination.

Police are also investigating after uncovering indications that A called well-known restaurants in other areas, including Yeosu, claimed that he had contracted food poisoning after eating there, and demanded settlement payments.

An official from Gwangju Seobu Police Station said, "This is a malicious crime in which he exploited the anxiety of small business owners to extort money." The official urged anyone who had been victimized to contact the station's Criminal Affairs Division or report the incident, adding that police are accepting reports of additional cases.

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