"I Thought It Was Luxury-Goods Delivery" ... The Fate of a 50-Something Voice-Phishing Cash Mule Who Moved KRW 800 Million [Scammers]

[Financial News]"I thought I had gotten a job at a luxury-goods purchasing agency."One day, Person A, a man in his 50s who had uploaded his résumé to a job-search website, was contacted by someone claiming to be a "team leader" at a luxury-goods purchasing agency. The person explained that the job involved exchanging or returning products purchased by customers and collecting the proceeds from sales.
The actual job was to travel around the country collecting large sums of cash. Person A traveled from Seoul to Suwon, Daegu, Busan and Gwangju, receiving anywhere from tens of millions of won to more than KRW 100 million from people he had never met. Over roughly a month, he made 18 collections, receiving a total of KRW 860.5 million in cash and checks.
The court did not find that Person A knew the full nature and structure of the voice-phishing organization from the outset. However, based on circumstances including his repeated collection and delivery of large sums of cash at the direction of a company whose business registration certificate he had not even checked, the court concluded that he recognized the possibility that his actions were criminal.
Person A became connected to the voice-phishing organization in May last year. After uploading his résumé to a job-search website, he was contacted by someone who introduced herself as "Team Leader Lee Ji-a" at an overseas direct-purchase online shopping mall. Although he submitted his resident registration card, resident registration certificate and résumé, he never met anyone from the company in person or attended an interview.
The initial job description involved exchanging or returning products and collecting sales proceeds. The work soon changed to "cash collection." From June to July last year, Person A traveled around the country, collecting large sums of cash and delivering them to members of the organization. There was no procedure for issuing delivery slips or receipts to the people who handed over the money.
Meanwhile, the victims were being deceived by the voice-phishing organization's script. Organization members first approached them while posing as card delivery workers, then impersonated officials from the Financial Supervisory Service or investigators from the Prosecution Service, telling them, "Your identity has been stolen" or "Your bank account has been used in a crime." They persuaded the victims to withdraw cash, claiming that the money had to be handed over to an employee to protect their assets. Person A was responsible for visiting the sites, collecting the money and delivering it to the organization.
One victim handed Person A KRW 61 million in Gwangjin District, Seoul. In Seocho-gu, Seoul, another victim handed over KRW 102 million over two days. In Gwangju, a victim deceived by organization members posing as a post office delivery worker, a credit card company employee and officials from the Prosecution Service handed over KRW 200 million in two installments. After receiving the money, Person A traveled to Gwangmyeong-si and delivered it to an unidentified man.
Person A argued at trial that he, too, had been deceived by the organization. He said he believed he had been legitimately hired by a luxury-goods purchasing agency and did not know that he was participating in voice-phishing crimes.
The court found that even if Person A did not know the voice-phishing organization's entire structure, criminal intent was established if he recognized and accepted the possibility that his cash-collection and delivery activities were criminal. The abnormal working methods also supported that conclusion. Person A did not know the victims' names or contact information. Instead, he received only descriptions of their appearance from the organization and searched for them at the scene. He sometimes collected money while saying it had been sent by people he did not know, such as "Manager Kim Jeong-min," "Team Leader Kim Seong-hwan" and "Deputy Manager Kim Mi-young."
Without checking the amount collected at the scene, he would part with the victim and then count the cash or photograph the shopping bag and send the image to the person directing him. He repeated this work for roughly a month and received KRW 5 million to KRW 6 million in compensation.
According to legal sources on the 27th, the Criminal Division of Seoul Eastern District Court sentenced Person A to three years and six months in prison for violating the Special Act on the Prevention of Loss Caused by Telecommunications-Based Financial Fraud and Refund for Loss. The ruling was handed down on the 11th.
The court also noted that Person A, who was in his mid-50s, had significant social experience after working for many years as a development researcher at an electronics company and as a corporate director. During the investigation, he reportedly stated that he had continued the work because of financial difficulties even though he thought it might not be legal. This statement also supported the court's conclusion that he recognized the possibility that the conduct was criminal.
However, the court took into account for sentencing that he did not plan or direct the overall crime and acted according to orders from higher-ranking members. It also considered in his favor that KRW 62 million of the stolen money had been confiscated and returned to the victims, and that he had no prior criminal record for a similar offense or any punishment more severe than a fine.
[email protected] Lee Dong-hyuk Reporter