Members of the Jinseongpa, a criminal organization operating in the southwestern area of Seoul and engaged in various illegal businesses, have been handed over to the prosecution.
On July 17, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency's Criminal Investigation Unit announced that it had referred 15 individuals, including the Jinseongpa's enforcer and other members, to the prosecution on charges including violations of the Act on the Punishment of Violent Acts, special robbery, and harboring criminals. Of these, nine have been detained and will stand trial in custody.
The police also plan to refer an additional 24 members, who are under further investigation for separate crimes, to the prosecution without detention within this month.
According to the police, these individuals are suspected of joining and participating in Jinseongpa from October 2018 to January of this year, using the organization’s influence to run various illegal businesses such as gambling websites and prostitution brokering.
Jinseongpa was formed in 1983 by alumni from the same middle and high school who committed crimes such as extorting entertainment venues and debt collection. After the original members retired, the organization became centered around those born in the 1980s, who have since expanded into online-based illegal businesses, including gambling websites, investment fraud, and money laundering.
The organization’s activities were systematic, with a clear hierarchy, code of conduct, and communication structure. The enforcers recruited 20 people, including former athletes from speculative sports and members of other regional criminal organizations, by promising significant earnings. In the southwestern area of Seoul, they lived together in group accommodations, where they were trained to obey senior members, demonstrate loyalty and solidarity to the organization, and memorize about 20 rules of conduct, including methods to evade investigations.
It was reported that they used threats and violence in their illegal businesses. From January to August 2022, while operating a prostitution ring, they intimidated competitors by visiting them as a group and displaying tattoos in an effort to absorb rival businesses.
It was also revealed that the organization maintained an emergency strike force to prepare for conflicts with other groups. They kept weapons such as knives and steel pipes at their group lodgings and reportedly conducted training on how to use these weapons.
A police official stated, "We will continue to strictly investigate individual crimes such as the illegal distribution of SIM cards and the establishment of gambling venues by criminal organizations. We are committed to focusing our investigations on these groups to ensure that the public does not suffer from organized crime in their daily lives."
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