Hapsudan, International Voice Phishing Organization Cracked... 111 Arrested, 24 Detained

78 Mid-level Members and 20 Organization Leaders Booked
Voice Phishing Damage Amount Decreased by 29% in One Year
Voice Phishing Involving Organized Crime and Drug Offenders

All seized items from the organization distributing fake bank accounts run by former organized crime members. / Provided by the Joint Investigation Team

[Asia Economy Reporter Jang Sehee] The Seoul Eastern District Prosecutors' Office Voice Phishing Crime Government Joint Investigation Team (Joint Investigation Team) announced on the 17th that since its launch in July last year, it has booked 111 voice phishing suspects over about five months, of whom 24 were arrested.

The Joint Investigation Team held a briefing on the '2022 Strict Response Results to Voice Phishing' at the Eastern District Prosecutors' Office on the morning of the same day and announced this. Among the 111 booked suspects by type, there were 78 mid-level executive members (70%), 20 voice phishing organization leaders (18%), and 13 others (12%). Among them, 24 were arrested, including 3 leaders and 16 mid-level executives.

The Joint Investigation Team stated, "The launch of the Government Joint Investigation Team made it possible for the prosecution, police, and related ministries to conduct joint investigations as one team, from account tracking to identifying accomplices, arrests, searches, and detention."

As a result, voice phishing damages have significantly decreased since the launch of the Government Joint Investigation Team. As of November last year, the amount of voice phishing damage recorded was 514.7 billion KRW, about 29% less than November 2021 (717.2 billion KRW). The number of cases also decreased from 28,676 to 20,779 over one year.

Organized Crime and Drug Offenders Also Involved... 'International Voice Phishing' Arrested

The Joint Investigation Team also uncovered crimes involving organized crime groups and drug offenders. They arrested four individuals, including a former organized crime member who was the main distributor of fake bank accounts, who established 16 ghost corporations and created dozens of fake bank accounts under corporate names, facilitating about 1.3 billion KRW in voice phishing fraud against 63 victims. Additionally, they fully reinvestigated a case where only simple cash collectors were sent without detention and arrested 30 people, including domestic and international leaders of a voice phishing organization involving drug offenders and organized crime groups, detaining nine of them.

They also arrested an international voice phishing organization. The Joint Investigation Team revealed that about 300 million KRW in voice phishing damages were transferred to Chinese accounts and arrested three illegal currency exchangers of Chinese nationality, detaining one. Based on real-time abnormal transaction data received from financial institutions, they also arrested a Chinese remittance agent who transferred about 500 million KRW to China.

They traced up the chain and identified and arrested the 'organization leaders.' The Joint Investigation Team booked two accomplices who defrauded about 80 million KRW from 19 victims in 2017 and 2018, adding charges of joining and participating in a criminal organization. Furthermore, they arrested a voice phishing SMS sender who sent about 2.2 million false loan messages and defrauded 6 billion KRW. They also arrested and detained domestic managers and voice phishing organization leaders who fled to China and other countries.

Recently, they analyzed that crimes recruiting cash collectors through job sites are increasing. In particular, cases recruiting cash collectors such as young workers and university students through false job advertisements are on the rise.

Meanwhile, the Joint Investigation Team said, "We will actively pursue the arrest and repatriation of leaders fleeing overseas through close international cooperation," and "We will do our best to protect our citizens safely from voice phishing crimes."