'100 Billion Won in Annual Sales': Claw Machines Rigged at Arcade... 387 Illegal Adult PC Café Cases Uncovered

[Financial News] Police have moved to block so-called 'evasive operations,' in which businesses voluntarily shut down or change their registered names and reopen after being targeted in crackdowns on illegal adult PC cafés. By immediately notifying local governments of police enforcement actions, authorities also sharply reduced the time required to issue advance notice of administrative action—from about 42 days to around six.
The Korean National Police Agency said on the 20th that it had taken action in 387 cases during a three-week intensive crackdown on illegal adult PC cafés from the 24th of last month to the 11th of this month, and had seven people, including operators and ringleaders, placed under arrest. A total of 607 violations, including breaches of facility standards, were reported to local governments. The number of cases targeted increased by more than 22% from the previous year.
This crackdown marked the first application of a 'fast-track procedure for expedited enforcement and administrative action' between central and local governments. Previously, after police notified local governments of a crackdown, they typically spent two to three months conducting an investigation. The police then notified them of the investigation results again when the case was referred, after which the advance administrative notice was issued.
Under the revised procedure, police immediately inform local governments of specific violations when they conduct a crackdown, allowing the administrative process to begin promptly. Because business closure filings and similar actions are prohibited from the time advance notice is issued under the Game Industry Promotion Act, the measure is intended to prevent evasive operations, such as voluntarily closing or changing the registered name between the crackdown and administrative action. As a result, the time needed to initiate administrative action fell from an average of 42.2 days to 6.2 days.
The recovery of criminal proceeds and the blocking of illegal websites were also strengthened. The amount preserved before indictment for confiscation or collection rose from 60 million won last year to 5.2 billion won this year, while the value of tax data reported to the National Tax Service (NTS) increased by more than 600%, from 5.8 billion won to 41.6 billion won. Seven illegal websites were also blocked.
After consulting with the Game Rating and Administration Committee (GRAC), the police also decided to cut the website-blocking procedure, which previously took at least 20 days, to within five days, effective from the 11th.
During this crackdown, police successively uncovered organizations supplying illegal game websites to adult PC cafés as well as establishments that continued operating even after being targeted. The Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency arrested four people, including a ringleader, who had set up an illegal game website in an apartment in Yangju, Gyeonggi Province, and distributed it to 121 adult PC cafés in the Seoul metropolitan area. Police tracked down the distributor and the ringleader hiding in a motel through leads from the targeted adult PC cafés and obtained a pre-indictment preservation order for the collection of 900 million won in criminal proceeds.
The Jeonnam Provincial Police Agency arrested two people, including the actual operator and a so-called 'front owner,' who had run an unregistered adult PC café since 2023 using unrated games and providing cash-exchange services. It obtained a pre-indictment preservation order for the confiscation of 420 million won in criminal proceeds.
The Gangwon Provincial Police Agency investigated a large game parlor that had operated in Chuncheon for an extended period since 2017, arrested three people, including the owner and a cash exchanger, and applied for pre-indictment preservation for the confiscation of 500 million won in criminal proceeds. The Gimhae Jungbu Police Station arrested two people, including the owner of an adult PC café who had installed seven PCs and operated a cash-exchange business, and obtained a pre-indictment preservation order for 260 million won in criminal proceeds belonging to the owner and an employee.
Kim Young-geun, director general of the Crime Prevention and Response Bureau at the Korean National Police Agency, said, "This is the result of proactive administration achieved through the concerted efforts of the central and local governments to minimize harm to citizens caused by illegal adult PC cafés. We will continue to strengthen cooperation with relevant agencies while working to create an environment that allows us to focus more closely on enforcement and investigations."


[email protected] Kim Ye-ji Reporter