South Korean Police Arrest Two in $4.1M Crypto Fraud; Terraform Labs Co-founder Released from Prison
Summary:
South Korean authorities arrested two fraudsters in their 20s and 30s for swindling a senior citizen out of 5.5 billion won ($4.1 million) using a cryptocurrency investment scam. The victim was deceived with fake balance certificates and duped into six transactions between September and December 2022. The swindlers are now in custody, but details regarding fund recovery remain elusive. In related news, South Korean crypto entrepreneur, Do Kwon, was released from Montenegro prison amid extradition requests from the US and South Korea.
Two individuals implicated in a fraudulent scheme were nabbed by South Korean authorities for swindling a senior citizen of his 5.5 billion won ($4.1 million) by promising high-yield crypto investments. The accused, aged in their 20s and 30s, were reported to the local Haeundae Police Station in Busan, South Korea, for duping an elderly man in several transactions between September and December 2022. The fraudsters assured the victim that investing in cryptocurrencies would yield a monthly return of 70% on a 1 billion won investment. According to the police, the scheming duo whipped up the frenzy of the cryptocurrency craze by stating, "With the current boom in digital coins, a 1 billion won investment will turn into 1.7 billion won in just a month."
The unsuspecting victim wired a total of 5.5 billion won to the perpetrators in six separate transactions. To substantiate their claims, the criminals fabricated balance certificates to mislead the victim into believing they were credible investments. Phony cryptocurrency investment balance sheets and sham property agreement documents were shown to the elderly man to allay any suspicions.
The South Korean police revealed that the deceptive balance sheet displayed cryptocurrencies worth 20 billion won, despite none of the victim's funds ever reaching the cryptocurrency trading account. As of now, the conniving duo are in police custody, but no details are available about the recovery of the stolen funds.
In related news, Terraform Labs co-founder Do Kwon, a well-known personality in the South Korean cryptocurrency circle, was released from a prison in Montenegro on March 23 amid extradition demands from both the United States and South Korea. Kwon currently faces legal proceedings due to the 2022 crash of the TerraUSD and LUNA (LUNA) ecosystems. According to Darko Vukcevic, the prison director, Do Kwon was released upon completion of his sentence for fraudulent travel documents. Owing to his foreign nationality and document confiscation, he was taken for further questioning by the foreigner police directorate. The Supreme Court Council is set to review a verdict to either approve or dismiss Kwon’s extradition to South Korea.
In other crypto-related matters, readers should be cautious of potential risks when investing in Solana memecoins.
Published At
3/26/2024 1:03:11 PM
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