"My Wealth Is Draining Away on Sweet Lies"... Wife of Dementia Patient Cannot Even Tell Her Children About His 'Romance Scam' [This Law]

[Financial News] A woman has sought legal advice, saying she is even considering divorcing her husband because, after being diagnosed with mild dementia, he fell victim to a romance scam and has been sending away the assets he saved over his lifetime.

On the 22nd, YTN Radio's 'Lawyer Jo In-seop's Consultation Room' featured the story of Ms. A, a woman considering divorcing her husband, who has been diagnosed with mild dementia.
Ms. A began by saying, "My husband was a decent, upright man. He treated me well from the time we were dating, and after we married, he was both a loving husband and a reliable father."
She continued, "My husband was more diligent than anyone at work and completed his career faithfully. He had just retired and was planning to spend the second half of his life in a more meaningful way, but things changed recently when he was diagnosed with mild dementia."
Ms. A confessed, "Unlike before, my husband's judgment has noticeably declined. He started using social media (SNS) on his smartphone, was deceived by a stranger, and fell victim to a 'romance scam.'"
She said, "The other person approached my husband with all kinds of sweet lies, and he truly believed every word. He is still regularly transferring large sums of money."
She added, "No matter how much I tried to stop him, I could not break his faith in that person. The assets he saved over his lifetime are rapidly dwindling. I have not even been able to tell our children. Although it is a scam, the relationship is a 'romance scam,' so from my husband's perspective, it is embarrassing, isn't it?"
At the same time, she said, "I can no longer stand by and watch. I am worried about how much more of our assets could disappear if my husband's cognitive abilities decline further, and I think it will become increasingly difficult for me to stop him on my own."
Ms. A, who had ultimately begun considering divorce, sought advice, saying, "My husband has not completely lost his decision-making capacity, but he is in a situation where it is difficult for him to make normal judgments as he did before. I want to know whether I can proceed with a divorce under these circumstances, whether there is a way to protect the remaining assets through the division of marital property if we divorce, and whether the money my husband has already sent to the scammer can actually be recovered through legal means."

Lawyer Ji Yeon Kim, who reviewed the case, explained, "If the husband's dementia is mild and he has not completely lost his decision-making capacity, both an uncontested divorce and a contested divorce are possible. His act of squandering assets after falling victim to a romance scam may constitute a serious reason that makes it difficult to continue the marriage under Article 840(6) of the Civil Act. On that basis, a divorce can be sought."
However, Lawyer Kim pointed out that because the husband has not lost his decision-making capacity, it would be difficult in practice to immediately challenge the asset dispositions themselves as invalid. She advised, "To prevent more assets from disappearing, you can consider asset-preservation measures such as provisional attachment or a provisional disposition alongside a divorce lawsuit. Depending on the extent of his impaired judgment, the systems of limited guardianship or specific guardianship may also be used. Assets already lost to the scam may likewise be taken into account during the division of marital property, depending on the circumstances."
She added, "It is also possible to seek the return of the money sent to the scammer or claim damages on the grounds of fraud, as well as consider filing a criminal complaint. However, romance scammers generally use services such as Telegram from overseas, making them difficult to track through investigations, so such measures often have limited effectiveness."

[email protected] Su-yeon Kim Reporter