Telegram Chatrooms and Overseas Exchange Trading Continue
At Least 180 Victims Confirmed by Police Investigation
According to a police investigation, it has been found that the meme coin MZS (Member Zone Solutions), which was determined to have no economic value as a virtual asset, is still being traded.
On September 6, Yonhap News reported that approximately 3,500 people, including MZS coin investors, are participating in the Telegram chatroom 'Member Zone Solutions Official' and are continuing conversations related to the coin. Most of the participants are believed to be fake users or shills set up by the foundation that developed and sold MZS Coin, with only a few dozen to a few hundred actual investors-meaning, actual victims of the incident-estimated to be present.
MZS Coin was already determined to be virtually worthless after a year-long investigation by Hanam Police Station in Gyeonggi Province that began in July last year. However, shills are showing the price of MZS Coin on the overseas exchange UZX, where it is listed (about $0.001, or roughly 1.4 KRW), and are making claims such as "It is currently strong," in an attempt to reassure victims. Those who have already purchased MZS Coin at a price 100 times higher than the current rate (about 100 KRW per coin) and suffered significant losses have no option but to wait for a potential listing on a domestic exchange, making it difficult for them to decide to withdraw their investment.
Last month, the police referred 27 individuals, including the main perpetrator, Mr. A, to the prosecution without detention on charges of fraud. Mr. A and others are accused of deceiving victims into believing they could profit by investing in the meme coin MZS Coin, which was created in just two hours between April and August last year, and defrauding a total of 1.4 billion KRW from 22 people. A meme coin is a type of coin inspired by internet memes, created for fun, with no utility and highly speculative in nature.
Selling at 100 Times the Actual Price per Coin
Mr. A and his associates sent random text messages claiming, "You have won an airdrop event," and provided free MZS Coins to those who responded, instructing them to install a coin wallet. They then lied, saying that MZS Coin, which is worth only $0.001 per coin (about 1.4 KRW), was about to be listed on a domestic exchange, and sold it for about 100 KRW per coin. In addition, they lured high-value investors (those investing over 40 million KRW) by promising them memberships to famous golf courses in Thailand, the Philippines, and Japan, according to the amount invested. As a result of these tactics, the number of people confirmed by police to have invested in MZS Coin through searches and seizures has reached around 180.
One victim who invested tens of millions of KRW told Yonhap News, "There are still hundreds of victims who believe the value of MZS Coin will increase in the future. The police have already referred the case to the prosecution, so I do not understand how the Telegram chatroom related to this coin is still active and trading is continuing."
There has also been criticism that the police did not make enough effort to identify victims, as they only took statements from about 20 out of the total 180 victims. In response, an official from Hanam Police Station explained, "We did our best by calling as many victims as possible, but many showed an uncooperative attitude, even protesting that 'if MZS Coin fails to be listed on a domestic exchange, we will hold the police responsible.' In fact, some even submitted written requests asking for the investigation to be halted, so there was no other choice."
Suspects Created Six Different Coins to Commit Fraud
To address the shortcomings of the MZS Coin case, the Anti-Corruption and Economic Crime Investigation Unit of the Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency has decided to consolidate and intensively investigate related cases. The unit had previously investigated the GCV (Golf Cart Victoria) Coin case, another meme coin created by Mr. A and others, and referred it to the prosecution last month. The GCV Coin case involved the same suspects and identical methods as the MZS Coin case. At that time, police reported the damage as involving 129 victims and losses totaling 5.7 billion KRW.
An official from the Anti-Corruption Investigation Unit stated, "Mr. A and others created a total of six coins, including the golf-related meme coins MZS and GCV, to commit fraud. We plan to conduct a supplementary investigation into the MZS Coin case at the request of the prosecution and will consolidate all other related coin cases from other departments."
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
