[Anchor]
Multiple complaints have been filed regarding a scam on a well-known luxury goods purchasing agency website, prompting a police investigation. However, it has been confirmed that the suspect, who has already fled abroad, is brazenly continuing their fraudulent activities locally, as if mocking the ongoing investigation.
Reporter Yoo Soo-Hwan has this exclusive report.
[Reporter]
On July 20, a person surnamed Park attempted to purchase a bag on a well-known luxury goods purchasing agency website.
Park inquired about the purchase through a comment on the official seller's product description post and transferred 4.68 million won to the designated account.
A few hours later, Park realized that the nickname of the person who replied was different from the seller.
[Park / Scam Victim: (Originally it was) 'Celeb', but they made it like 'Sseleb', using a similar ID. I said I would buy it without any suspicion...]
The next day, Park visited the Gyeonggi Bundang Police Station to file a report.
The Bundang Police Station, which identified the suspect as a person in their 20s surnamed Kwon, transferred the case to the Yeongju Police Station in North Gyeongsang Province, which has jurisdiction over Kwon's address, in accordance with case handling regulations. During that process, a week simply passed.
A week after that, another person surnamed Kim, who fell victim to the exact same scam on the same website, visited the Seoul Gangseo Police Station to report the damage.
Kim visited a bank before going to the police station, but was told that a police request was necessary to block withdrawals from the criminal's account.
[Kim / Scam Victim: I asked (the bank) to suspend payments on the (perpetrator's) account because I suspected fraud, and they said that unless the police requested it, they could not suspend payments...]
However, Kim subsequently received a response from the officer in charge stating that "under current law, account payment suspensions are only possible for voice phishing crimes," and was told to "inquire with the bank again," failing to take any action.
The police first sent an official cooperation letter to banks asking to "suspend withdrawals" from the suspect's account on August 25, more than a month after Park's initial report.
In the meantime, the suspect left the country for the Philippines without receiving any restrictions, and the number of victims has grown to 60 to date.
[Kwak Jun-ho / Attorney: There is a need for institutional arrangements to ensure prompt account freezing, limited to cases where there are numerous victims and the (charges) are clearly revealed...]
Victims who have opened a group chat room expressed their frustration during recent police investigations, stating that they confirmed the suspect, currently in the Philippines, is continuing their crimes using new accounts.
[Kim / Scam Victim: No matter how difficult it is to catch someone who has fled overseas, the fact that they can keep creating accounts and committing fraud is so shocking, and it makes me think there is something wrong with the system.]
(Video Reporter: Kim Hyun-sang, Bae Moon-san | Video Editing: Kim Yoon-sung)
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