Police Launch Special Crackdown on Illegal Distribution of 'Livelihood Recovery Consumption Coupons'

Measures to Recover Criminal Proceeds

The National Office of Investigation of the Korean National Police Agency announced on July 24 that it will conduct a special crackdown on the illegal distribution of Livelihood Recovery Consumption Coupons.

At the Haenggung-dong Administrative Welfare Center in Paldal-gu, Suwon City, Gyeonggi Province, public officials are checking notices and other materials ahead of the application period for the Livelihood Recovery Consumption Coupons starting on the 21st. Photo by Yonhap News Agency

The Livelihood Recovery Consumption Coupons are a measure designed to boost the economy by stimulating consumption and increasing sales for small business owners and self-employed individuals. However, there are concerns that government funds could be misappropriated to ineligible recipients through discounts or cash transactions.

The police will crack down on the following activities: franchisees processing card payments for consumption coupons without actual goods transactions and then returning cash to customers; franchisees generating sales without real transactions and then fraudulently obtaining sales proceeds from card companies or the government; person-to-person scams disguised as discounted sales of consumption coupons; and the transfer of access media, such as credit or debit cards loaded with consumption coupons, to others.

The cyber investigation units and anti-corruption and economic crime investigation units of provincial police agencies will monitor and initiate investigations into illegal distribution of consumption coupons. For various civil complaints, specialized investigative personnel such as intelligence teams at police stations will be deployed. The police plan to respond proactively by thoroughly tracking criminal proceeds obtained through these offenses and seizing or preserving them for forfeiture before prosecution.

An official from the Korean National Police Agency stated, "We will relentlessly pursue and strictly punish those who unjustly profit by purchasing and exchanging consumption coupons without actual goods transactions, which goes against the original purpose of the Livelihood Recovery Consumption Coupons."