Opening the Orange Box Revealed a Trove of Hermès... Luxury Tax Evaders Caught Red-Handed

[The Financial News] Bundles of cash, luxury handbags, and even pure gold. The hidden assets of high-value tax evaders who lived lavishly without paying taxes have been uncovered.
The National Tax Service (NTS) announced on the 10th that, in cooperation with seven metropolitan governments including the Seoul Metropolitan Government (SMG) and Gyeonggi Province, it conducted joint searches from October 20 to 31, seizing assets worth a total of 1.8 billion KRW.
This operation marked the first large-scale joint action to strengthen inter-agency cooperation in line with the 'realization of tax justice' emphasized since President Lee Jae-myung took office.
The main targets were 18 individuals who had defaulted on both national and local taxes.
The joint search teams shared information such as the NTS’s data on suspected asset concealment and local governments’ on-site intelligence, including CCTV footage and apartment management records. Together, they identified targets and locations, then carried out stakeouts, inquiries, and on-site searches to confirm the status of the delinquent taxpayers.
During a search of one delinquent taxpayer (Mr. A)’s residence, the NTS joint task force opened an orange paper box, revealing 60 luxury Hermès bags that filled the room.
Mr. A was suspected of concealing assets under his spouse’s name after failing to pay several hundred million KRW in capital gains tax from a real estate sale. After tracking his actual residence, authorities seized cash, 37.5 grams of pure gold, four pieces of artwork, luxury bags, and other assets totaling approximately 900 million KRW.
Another delinquent, Mr. B, was the head of a payment processing company. He personally used corporate income and failed to pay several hundred million KRW in comprehensive income tax.
During the first search, only 10 million KRW in cash and two luxury watches were seized, but the joint task force did not overlook suspicious signs.
With the cooperation of the CCTV Control Center, they captured footage of Mr. B’s spouse moving several hundred million KRW in cash in a suitcase. In a second search, they seized an additional 400 million KRW in cash and two more luxury watches.
In total, hidden assets worth approximately 500 million KRW were uncovered.
A third delinquent, Mr. C, operated a computer security service and failed to report income under both corporate and personal names, accumulating significant tax arrears.
Although Mr. C reported no income, he paid several million KRW in monthly rent for a luxury home and continued to spend tens of millions of KRW annually on luxury goods.
As a result of the joint search, six luxury bags, twelve pieces of jewelry, and 41 high-end clothing items (worth about 50 million KRW) were seized.
Based on the results of this joint operation, the NTS plans to expand cooperation with related agencies, sharing tax information and expertise and conducting joint searches to continuously target high-value and habitual tax evaders who conceal assets and live extravagantly.
Additionally, this month, the Special Task Force for Tracking High-Value Delinquent Taxpayers will be deployed to carry out immediate investigations, tracking, and collection as soon as new delinquencies are detected.
An NTS official emphasized, “Tracking and collecting hidden assets from high-value and habitual tax evaders requires not only the efforts of the NTS and local governments, but also active reports from the public. We urge citizens to refer to the published lists of high-value and habitual tax evaders on our website and report them proactively.”
imne@fnnews.com Hong Ye-ji Reporter