Carrot Market 'Cheap Villa' Contract Deposit Scam Caught... Remote Contract Fraud Group Arrested

[Financial News] A new type of rental scammer who lured victims with rental listings significantly lower than market prices and induced remote electronic contracts to defraud a total of 3.5 billion won was caught by the police.
Seoul Mapo Police Station announced on the 22nd that they arrested suspects A (in their 30s) and B (in their 30s) who posted fake real estate listings on the second-hand trading platform 'Carrot Market' and intercepted contract deposits, and sent them to detention on the 16th.
According to the police, they attracted victims by posting listings on Carrot Market with phrases like 'urgent sale' and 'imminent sale' offering conditions significantly cheaper than market prices. For example, offering a property with a rental market price of 3.5 billion won for a deposit of 20 million won and a monthly rent of 500,000 won. Many victims were young adults in their 20s and 30s who hastily signed contracts without properly checking the surrounding market prices or whether it was brokered. The listings were concentrated in villas and officetels in the southwestern area of Seoul, including Mapo-gu and Yongsan-gu, and in Incheon.
They disguised the listings as real vacant properties by receiving addresses and shared entrance and unit passwords from their superiors through overseas server-based SNS group chats. They then used business cards of certified real estate agents, forged contracts, and electronic contract platforms to sign remote contracts with victims. When asked for on-site visits, they only provided passwords, saying "too busy to show in person," and made sure the doors could be opened to make victims believe it was a 'real listing.'
Some victims realized the scam after completing the move-in report and being asked to vacate by the actual homeowner. One victim even suffered double damage by being reported for 'refusal to vacate' by the homeowner. The police believe they defrauded a total of 3.5 billion won from 51 people, with contract deposits ranging from a minimum of 1 million won to a maximum of 20 million won.
The organization laundered the defrauded contract deposits into virtual assets to avoid tracking and threatened victims who realized the scam and demanded refunds with deepfake pornography. The police are continuing their investigation, believing the organization divided roles into leaders, listing posters, and password deliverers.
Mapo Police Station advised, "When making an electronic contract, it is important to check if the account holder matches the actual broker and if they are a formally registered brokerage business. Always suspect listings with conditions significantly cheaper than market prices and ensure safe contracts through certified real estate agents."

425_sama@fnnews.com Choi Seung-han Reporter