Bank Employee Suspects Voice Phishing and Reports to 112
A man in his 50s who was nearly scammed out of 100 million won in cash by a romance scammer impersonating a Ukrainian female soldier was able to prevent the loss with the help of a bank employee.
According to the Cheonan Seobuk Police Station in Chungnam on the 28th, Mr. A exchanged messages earlier this month through social networking services (SNS) such as Facebook and KakaoTalk with Mr. B, who introduced himself as an active-duty Ukrainian female soldier.
Mr. B sent messages to Mr. A saying, "I want to move to Korea to start a new life due to the long war and exposure to danger," "I want to meet Mr. A in Korea," "I have profits from an oil business investment, but since it is wartime, I need a place to keep it," and "If Mr. A receives it on my behalf, I will pay a storage fee." Along with these messages, he sent his photos and videos and asked Mr. A to transfer 100 million won in cash.
Believing these words, Mr. A visited the NH Nonghyup Bank Seongjeong-dong branch in Seobuk-gu, Cheonan on the 23rd and attempted to transfer 100 million won to Mr. B's account.
The bank employee in charge sensed something suspicious from Mr. A's expression and response, who said he needed to send money to a diplomat acquaintance for payment, stopped the transfer, and reported it to 112.
Police investigation revealed that all of Mr. B's messages were fraudulent. It was found that Mr. A, who had been living alone after a divorce, was completely unaware that he was nearly a victim of a crime.
The Cheonan Seobuk Police Station visited the NH Nonghyup Bank Seongjeong-dong branch that morning and presented a letter of appreciation to the bank employee who prevented the scam.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
