Those Living in LCT Driving Porsches... Illegal Loan Sharking Worth 40 Billion Won, Organization Living Luxuriously with 5214% Interest Caught

Operation of 8 Nationwide Organizations, Illegal Lending to Over 7,900 People

Purchase of Rolls-Royce, Porsche, Yachts, and Luxury Apartments

Corporate-type illegal loan shark organization chart. [Image source: Busan Police Agency]

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Sang-hyun] A corporate illegal lending organization that provided high-interest illegal loans with an annual rate of up to 5214% to more than 7,900 small business owners and others, pocketing about 14.6 billion KRW, has been caught by the police.

On the 11th, the Anti-Corruption and Economic Crime Investigation Unit of the Busan Metropolitan Police Agency announced that they arrested A (male, in his 40s), the head of the corporate lending organization, and 45 members on charges of violating the Act on Registration of Credit Business and Protection of Finance Users. A was detained, while the members were booked without detention.

They are suspected of illegally lending about 40 billion KRW through eight unregistered lending organizations nationwide, including Seoul, Daegu, Busan, and Gyeongnam, from December 2019 to May this year, and obtaining about 14.6 billion KRW in unfair profits.

According to the police investigation, A meticulously committed the crimes by managing each team member in a dormitory to evade police investigation, giving work instructions using burner phones, monitoring transactions in real time, and ensuring that members only knew their superiors and subordinates but not each other.

Additionally, when borrowing, they demanded debtors provide contact information of family and friends, workplace names, and family relation certificates, using these as means of pressure to repay the loans.

A enjoyed a luxurious lifestyle by purchasing four units in Haeundae LCT, five luxury apartments, two Rolls-Royce cars, a Porsche, yachts, and more with the illegal profits obtained this way.

The police first arrested A through analysis of financial transaction records and CCTV footage, then traced back the eight organizations, arresting a total of 46 people.

The police applied for pre-indictment seizure and preservation on about 740 million KRW worth of cars, real estate, and lease deposits owned by A, receiving court approval, and secured 373 million KRW in cash through search and seizure.