[The Editors' Verdict] Time to Eradicate "Second Villa Kings and Construction Kings"

After President Yoon's Call for Strict Crackdown
Expansion of Targets... Various Bills Passed in the National Assembly

Nam Mo, who was called the "Construction King" in the Incheon area, was recently arrested. This occurred about two weeks after the government declared a war against "villa fraudsters" and announced related measures on the 2nd of last month. With Nam's arrest, investigations into accomplices in the Michuhol-gu lease fraud case, as well as victim compensation, are expected to become more active. However, this is not the first time a detention warrant has been requested for Nam.

Previously, in December last year, the police applied for a detention warrant against Nam on charges including fraud. However, Nam was released after the warrant was dismissed during the warrant review hearing. The court sided with the suspect, who completely denied the charges and pledged to do his best to compensate the victims.

The problem arose afterward. Nam weaponized the dismissal of the warrant and focused solely on "media play." Claiming his legitimacy was proven, he mobilized a law firm to file lawsuits demanding tens of millions of won in damages for defamation and spreading false information against all media reports and the claims of the victim countermeasure committee. However, it appears that after Nam avoided detention, there has been no confirmed case of reaching a settlement with victims or compensating damages. On the contrary, criticism has intensified that he used the two months to hide assets and destroy evidence.

According to the current detention warrant request, Nam is suspected of orchestrating an organized lease fraud in collusion with sublease operators, licensed real estate agents, and others. Nam owns a total of 2,700 houses in Incheon and the Gyeonggi-do area, most of which he built himself. This is more than twice the scale of the "Villa King," who owned 1,139 villas and died without returning the lease deposits.

This information is not much different from the first detention warrant application. The scope of the crime has been narrowed, and the amount of fraud damage has decreased from 26.6 billion won to 12.6 billion won. The only difference is that this detention warrant was issued shortly after President Yoon Suk-yeol urged the heads of the Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, and the National Police Agency to thoroughly crack down on lease fraud, calling it a heinous crime.

The government is currently expanding the scope of lease fraud crackdowns beyond "bad landlords" to include licensed real estate agents, brokerage assistants, sales agencies, and transaction brokerage platforms. A bill to prevent lease fraud, passed by the National Assembly's Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee on the 24th of last month, focuses on strengthening penalties for licensed real estate agents and appraisers involved in organized lease fraud. Additionally, on the 27th, the "Malicious Landlord Disclosure Act," proposed to prevent lease fraud damages such as those caused by the "Villa King" and "Construction King" cases, passed the plenary session of the National Assembly.

These are belated measures in a situation where astronomical damages have already occurred. During the housing price bubble, voices warning about lease fraud crimes had been growing louder. The lease system is currently facing various side effects, and even calls for its abolition have emerged. It is still too early to discuss the end of the lease system. However, as long as the system remains, "second Villa Kings or Construction Kings" must not appear. It is time to eradicate lease fraud crimes that have made ordinary people shed tears of blood through stern punishment and preventive measures.