831 Fraud Cases Over 10 Years with Lies
Victims Ended Up Divorced, on Basic Livelihood Benefits, and Imprisoned
2nd Trial Sentences '9 Years Imprisonment'
A man in his 40s who deceived an acquaintance with various excuses over about 10 years and extorted a staggering 1.4 billion won was sentenced to a heavy prison term again in the appellate court. The victim, thinking "Would someone really lie this much?", handed over money to the perpetrator, eventually losing all her assets, getting divorced by her husband, and falling into basic livelihood security recipient status.
On the 8th, Yonhap News reported that the Criminal Division 1 of the Chuncheon Branch of the Seoul High Court (Chief Judge Min Ji-hyun) sentenced A (44), who was indicted on charges of fraud under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes, to 9 years in prison, the same as the original sentence. The court explained, "Although this is a first offense, the defendant embezzled over 1.4 billion won through hundreds of instances over 10 years, and considering the means of deception, the blameworthiness is high," adding, "There has been no change in sentencing conditions since the original judgment."
A was tried on charges of extorting a total of 1.425 billion won from B (69) over 831 instances from December 2011 to May 2021. A was the daughter-in-law of a religious group official, and the victim B was a follower.
A started by borrowing 9 million won from B and repaying it, then continuously demanded money. She borrowed money citing various reasons such as "My mother is a professor and lacks money for a staff wedding gift," "My mother needs brain surgery," and "I need hospital fees," but did not repay the money.
On another occasion, she demanded congratulatory money claiming her father was promoted to an executive at a large corporation, and took money promising to get B’s daughter a job at her father’s company. Later, she extorted money from B under pretexts such as her mother’s divorce requiring lawyer fees or needing litigation costs to receive money gifted from her father.
A’s lies continued over about 10 years and 831 instances, but B, thinking "Would someone really lie this much?", handed over money to A and eventually lost all her assets. During this process, she was divorced by her husband, and even borrowed money from acquaintances to give to A, only to be accused of fraud herself and imprisoned for a year. It is reported that B later became a basic livelihood security recipient and is currently working at a restaurant, gradually repaying her debts.
In the first trial, the Yeongwol Branch of Chuncheon District Court pointed out, "The defendant, whose income was irregular, and her husband, who had no significant income after quitting his job in 2011, were able to maintain their family life thanks to continuously extorting money from the victim," and sentenced her to 9 years in prison. This decision was close to the upper limit of the sentencing guidelines (4 years to 10 years and 6 months in prison). A appealed, claiming "The sentence is too heavy and unfair," but the second trial also ruled that 9 years in prison was appropriate, the same as the first trial.
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