"Give Me Transportation Money Because I'm Going to Work"... 20s Caught Taking Tens of Thousands of Won Each from Hundreds of Self-Employed People

Contacted Self-Employed Nationwide via Job Platform
Received Remittance and Disappeared... Most Small-Scale Damages Unreported

"I will work. Can you send me transportation expenses to get to the store?" Kim (37, male), the owner of a restaurant in Cheongju, Chungbuk, received this message last July after posting a job opening for a kitchen staff position. Kim, who was in urgent need of hiring and offered a salary of 3 million KRW plus α (up to 500,000 KRW depending on skill level) along with free one-room accommodation, readily agreed. Happily, he sent 50,000 KRW for transportation expenses to Lee (23, male) who lived in Ulsan, saying, "Have a meal and come up." However, after receiving the money, Lee left a message saying "I will work hard" and then disappeared.

On the 31st, the Ulsan Nambu Police Station arrested Lee and is investigating him on charges of fraud. Lee is suspected of exploiting the fact that self-employed business owners are struggling with hiring difficulties by asking for transportation expenses, claiming he would go to work, and collecting several tens of millions of KRW in total. Lee expressed his intention to work to self-employed business owners nationwide through job platforms, then requested and received transportation expenses for regional travel before disappearing. The police estimate that the number of victims and the amount of damage caused by Lee’s method could reach hundreds of people and tens of millions of KRW.

Lee planned the crime by taking advantage of the hiring difficulties faced by self-employed business owners. According to the ‘April Employment Trends’ announced by Statistics Korea on the 10th, the number of employed youth (aged 15-29) decreased by 137,000, marking six consecutive months of decline. It is analyzed that the hiring difficulties are especially severe for small-scale self-employed businesses that mainly employ low-skilled youth. On the same day, Kwon Ki-seop, Vice Minister of Employment and Labor, said, "The number of vacant jobs in manufacturing and accommodation and food service industries has increased for three consecutive months, indicating ongoing hiring difficulties in major industrial sites."

Text messages exchanged between victim Mr. Kim and suspect Mr. Lee on July 2nd of last year. [Image provided by victim Mr. Kim]

Kim, who was interviewed as a witness by the police last month, said, "I am appalled by Lee’s behavior, which is like sucking the liver out of a flea." He added, "I was scammed last year but did not report it because the amount was small. I thought Lee wouldn’t report for just about 50,000 KRW. It was only after receiving a call from the police that I learned Lee is a habitual offender."

The police said many victims did not report the crime because the damage amount was small. A police official said, "We identified the victims and contacted each one, asking them to file damage reports for prosecution."