Man in 60s Arrested for Defrauding Dentist of 25.3 Billion Won by Posing as "Multi-Billionaire"

A dentist who was previously referred to prosecutors for swindling more than 10 billion won in investment funds from patients and acquaintances has turned out to have been the victim of a massive scam, losing over 25 billion won to a man in his 60s who posed as a multi-billionaire.

The Gwangju Seobu Police Station announced today (the 15th) that it has arrested a man in his 60s, identified as A, on charges of fraud under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment, etc. of Specific Economic Crimes for allegedly taking and embezzling about 25 billion won from the dentist.

A is accused of deceiving a dentist in her 50s, identified as B, since 2022 by pretending to be a multi-billionaire and pocketing a total of 25.3 billion won.

Presenting himself as a wealth inheritor of three generations, A duped B by claiming that his inheritance alone amounted to 250 billion won.

After gaining B's trust by handing over luxury goods and food, A asked to borrow money, claiming that his factories and businesses had been attached due to lawsuits in the United States.

Investigations showed that A subsequently deceived B by promising to return several times the principal amount, and when B demanded repayment, A took additional funds under the pretext that the attachments needed to be lifted to dispose of a factory located in Gyeonggi Province.

To avoid B's suspicions, A even returned about 4 billion won under the guise of profit distributions.

The investigation revealed that A used an alias, wore a mask during his criminal acts, and utilized other people's mobile phones and accounts.

In particular, whenever he needed to make a call, he would travel about 20 kilometers away from his residence, talk for about five minutes, and then turn off his phone to evade police tracking.

Tracing mobile phones and accounts, the police confirmed that A resided in Namyangju, Gyeonggi Province, and emergency-arrested him last June after tracking and staking him out for about two months.

It was confirmed that A spent most of the money received from B on sponsorships for internet broadcasting and other purposes.

B was referred to the prosecution last August on charges of soliciting investments from patients and acquaintances to raise money to give to A, collecting over 10 billion won, and failing to return it.

While investigating B, the police discovered signs that investment funds were continuously flowing into a specific account and tracked the flow of funds.

The police plan to investigate whether A committed any additional crimes before forwarding the case to the prosecution.

B was arrested during the investigation but was released following a review of the legality of the arrest, and is reportedly continuing to treat patients who made advance payments.

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.