20s Sentenced to Prison for Food Delivery 'Meoktwi'... New Type of Fare Evasion Crime "I'll Pay You Later," Beware

Abuse of On-Site Payment Feature in Delivery Apps
Receiving Food in Advance Then Saying "I Lost My Card"
Group of Runaway Teenagers Caught Last March

Recently, the number of 'meoktwi' customers who order food but do not pay properly has been increasing. Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Juri] Recently, as crimes involving dine-and-dash using delivery applications have been increasing, a man in his 20s who ordered delivery food and promised to pay later but did not pay has been sentenced to imprisonment.

On the 25th, Judge Song Jongsun of the Chuncheon District Court Criminal Division 1 announced that he sentenced Mr. A, who was indicted on fraud charges, to three months in prison.

On January 1st, Mr. A called a restaurant in Chuncheon City and ordered sweet and sour pork, promising to pay later. It was later revealed that he did not pay 256,900 won for food such as chicken and pizza using the same method.

Mr. A had previously been sentenced to six months in prison in June for similar offenses and was undergoing an appeal trial. With the new sentence for this case, his incarceration period will be extended.

Judge Song stated, "I considered the fact that he repeatedly committed fraud against multiple victims, had a prior record of fines for fraud and related offenses, and that an appeal trial was ongoing for fraud committed using the same method."

Meanwhile, recently, self-employed business owners are struggling as the number of 'dine-and-dash' customers who order food but do not properly pay has been increasing.

In particular, cases of abusing the on-site payment feature embedded in delivery food apps to receive food on a post-payment basis and then not paying are on the rise.

In March, a group of runaway youths who habitually did not pay for food about ten times while roaming the Gyeongnam region were caught by the police on fraud charges.

Dine-and-dash is punishable under Article 3 of the Minor Offenses Act with a fine, detention, or penalty not exceeding 100,000 won. If the amount of damage is large or if there is habitual or intentional behavior, it can be charged as fraud.