"If You Invest, I'll Double Your Money" Man Who Swindled Acquaintances Out of Tens of Millions of Won Sentenced to Prison

[Financial News] A man who lured acquaintances into investing by promising high returns and then swindled them out of tens of millions of won has been sentenced to prison.
According to the legal community on the 15th, Judge Ma Sung-young of Single-Judge Criminal Division 7 at the Seoul Western District Court sentenced a man in his 40s, identified only by his surname A, to 10 months in prison and ordered him to pay 87 million won in compensation on March 20 last year for fraud.
A was found guilty of extorting a total of 87 million won in 16 separate instances from three acquaintances of his girlfriend.
Around July 31, 2008, A met his girlfriend's acquaintances and told them, "I am making a lot of money through stocks, and I am receiving funds from many people, including my girlfriend's father, to invest in stocks and generate profits," adding, "If you invest, I will double your money in seven months." He received money from them as investment funds, but instead of using it for investment, he spent it on living expenses. He also conspired with his girlfriend to send part of the money back to earlier investors in a Ponzi-style "recycling" scheme.
Then, around April 2009, he logged into a messenger program and sent a message to a victim, saying, "I am currently making a lot of money from investments and am receiving funds from various people to invest in stocks," and, "If you give me investment funds, I will pay you a return equal to 100% of your principal in seven months."
In reality, however, A was not earning any meaningful profits and was not in a situation where he was making money from stock trading. Even if he received money, he intended to use it either to repay other investors in a Ponzi-like manner or for his own living expenses.
The court concluded that even when A received money from the victims, he had no intention of returning the principal or paying any profits.
The court noted, "The total amount he misappropriated, 87 million won, is not small, and he evaded arrest by staying illegally in China for more than 10 years," adding, "The damage has not been remedied, and he has not been forgiven by the victims."
However, the court explained that it set the sentencing range in consideration of factors such as A's deep remorse for his wrongdoing and the fact that he has no prior criminal record.

theknight@fnnews.com Reporter Jeong Gyeong-su Reporter