Hong Taeyong, Mayor of Gimhae: "Cyber Gambling Is a Fraud Crime" ... Concludes the Challenge

Hong Taeyong, the mayor of Gimhae, Gyeongnam, marked the finale of the relay challenge to eradicate youth cyber gambling.

On the morning of the 12th, Mayor Hong participated as the final runner in the campaign aimed at raising awareness about the seriousness of youth cyber gambling and preventing it.

This campaign was initiated by the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency in response to the growing problems of illegal online games, such as cyber gambling targeting youths, and the increasing severity of secondary crimes like school violence committed to raise gambling funds.

Hong Taeyong, mayor of Gimhae, Gyeongnam (center), participated as the final participant in the campaign to eradicate cyber gambling among teenagers. Photo by Gimhae City Hall

The campaign was conducted in a relay format, where participants posted photos of themselves holding a placard with the campaign slogan on social networking services (SNS) and nominated the next runner.

The campaign began on March 18 with the Commissioner of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency as the first runner, and was joined by local government heads and institution leaders across the country.

Mayor Hong emphasized, "Cyber gambling is not just gambling, it is a criminal act of fraud," and added, "You should never start it."

He continued, "The issue of youth gambling has a serious impact on individuals and society and destroys the minds of young people," and stated, "Our city of Gimhae will also make efforts to block addictive crimes among youths."