Exclusive: "How Can We Stop Smuggling?"... Victims Left Fuming Over Blame Game

[Anchor]

Learning that a fraudster had fled, victims frantically called investigative agencies, only to be met with police and prosecutors passing the buck to each other. Frustrated by the inaction, the victims eventually took matters into their own hands and set out to track the suspect down themselves.

This is an exclusive report by reporter An Huijae.

[Reporter]

Shocked to hear that the fraudster, surnamed Park, had escaped—whom they believed was behind bars—victims called the police officer in charge of the case, only to receive an absurd response.

[Victim & Police Investigator (Phone call on August 19): (What if he runs away, what if he smuggles himself out of the country?) ... What are we supposed to do about maritime smuggling? How are we supposed to stop maritime smuggling?]

The investigator claimed they had already handed over most of the fraud cases, pointing the finger at the prosecutors and the court.

[Victim & Police Investigator (Phone call on August 19): In cases like Mr. ○○○'s, it's not my case. Ask the prosecutor where he is and tell them to catch him. The responsibility lies with the court that initially released him with a three-year suspended sentence, and with the prosecutors who failed to take action...]

The prosecutors' explanation, however, was somewhat different.

They shifted the ball back, stating that it was the police who had obtained the arrest warrant for Park.

[Victim & Prosecution Investigator (Phone call on September 1): Since it's a separate case, it's currently unrelated to us. The police officer probably knows better than anyone else.]

Disappointed by this back-and-forth between the police and prosecutors, the victims went to visit Park's family directly, which led to a commotion when police were dispatched to the scene.

[Responding Police Officer (September 2): Because the law isn't playing its proper role, you people came here to deliver justice yourselves. But you could still end up punished for trespassing. The law, well, at times like this...]

[Lim Seo-yeon / Luxury Goods Purchase Fraud Victim: It felt like a game of table tennis, with them trying to dodge responsibility. It was always, "It's not us," "It's not us either"... Giving them all the time to hide and escape. Why should we be the ones running around trying to catch them?]

When asked about where the responsibility lay, voices within the police complained, asking why prosecutors were not being proactive and claiming that prosecutors were abandoning livelihood-related cases ahead of the implementation of the revised Criminal Procedure Act. Meanwhile, a prosecution official maintained a principled stance, stating that since the suspect was originally incarcerated, they were investigating according to procedures based on a case forwarded without detention.

(Video Editing: Kim Jin-won, VJ: Jaemin, Design: Yang Gi-tae, Kim Min-young)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.