[Anchor]

We previously brought you an exclusive report last May about a case where victims dubbed a 20-year-old man the "second Jeon Cheong-jo" after he posed as a wealthy woman to pull off luxury goods scams. At the time of our report, he was behind bars for another fraud case, but after being released on probation, he vanished without a trace, prompting police to launch a manhunt.

Here is our report by reporter Kim Gyu-ri.

[Reporter]

A 20-year-old man surnamed Park posed as a wealthy female influencer on social media, promoting the sale of luxury goods at bargain prices.

Victims flooded forward, saying they had sent money lured by prices one-tenth of the market value, only to receive nothing for two years.

[SBS 8 News (May 11): This woman, who flaunted her wealth by showcasing high-end officetels and supercars, turned out to be a 20-year-old man. Victims unanimously pointed out the similarities to the past Jeon Cheong-jo case.]

In this case, which was brought to light through an exclusive SBS report last May, the number of confirmed victims has grown to around 50, with total damages swelling to 4.5 billion won.

At the time of the report, Park was already detained in a detention center for another fraud crime, in which he signed a contract to take over the cafe where he worked but failed to pay over 100 million won.

[Cafe Employee: We couldn't get in touch with him either, so we thought he was sick. Turns out that wasn't the case.]

Police investigating the "second Jeon Cheong-jo case" proved the charges through visits to the detention center and forwarded part of the case to prosecutors in early July.

The problem began on July 16, when Park was released after receiving a suspended sentence in an appellate trial for his previous fraud case.

Police requested an arrest warrant for Park on luxury fraud charges, but Park went off the grid ahead of his pre-trial detention hearing scheduled for August 18.

Although the arrest warrant was issued following a hearing held in his absence, Park was already gone.

Regarding suspicions over why they did not rush to secure custody, the police explained that Park had been cooperative after his release, appearing for summons with a lawyer, admitting to the charges, and stating an intent to compensate for the damages.

The police, who have belatedly launched a manhunt, placed a travel ban on Park and issued a nationwide wanted poster for him.

(Video Editing: Lim Yeojin, VJ: No Jaemin, Design: Kang Yun-jung)