Thailand-based 'Runggeo Company' accused of swindling 15.1 billion won; six more members indicted while in custody

[Financial News] Six Korean members of a voice-phishing criminal organization based in Southeast Asia have been additionally indicted while in custody on suspicion of defrauding around 700 victims in South Korea of about 15.1 billion won.
According to legal sources on the 10th, the Third Criminal Division of the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors' Office, headed by Chief Prosecutor Kim Chang-hui, indicted five members of 'Runggeo Company' on the 8th of last month and one on the 6th, respectively, while they were in custody. They face charges of joining and operating a criminal organization and violating the Special Act on the Prevention of Loss Caused by Telecommunications-Based Financial Fraud and Refund. Including the 21 indicted in September and October last year, a total of 27 Korean members have been indicted while in custody in this case.
Members of Runggeo Company are suspected of defrauding 705 victims in South Korea of approximately 15.093 billion won in the Pattaya area of Thailand between January and July last year.
Investigators believe the organization operated under a Chinese ringleader known as 'Ja-ryong,' with headquarters directors, team leaders and team members divided among a Lotto Compensation Coin Fraud Team, a romance scam team, a team impersonating investigative agencies and a no-show team.
The Lotto Compensation Coin Fraud Team claimed it was offering compensation because a lottery-number prediction website had failed to predict the first-prize winning numbers, and tricked victims into paying for coins by falsely promising to sell them at a low price. All six additionally indicted members belonged to this team. They were recently repatriated to South Korea after serving about a year under Thai law.
The romance scam team posed as fictional women and persuaded victims to watch live broadcasts, then asked them to “exchange the coins and send them back because too many had been sent.” The team collected money under the pretext of coin top-ups and fees, claiming that currency conversion incurred costs.
The team impersonating investigative agencies told victims that their accounts were implicated in crimes and persuaded them to send money to designated accounts for an asset check. The no-show team posed as soldiers and others, said they would visit a store, then swindled money by asking the victims to buy needed items on their behalf from vendors the team had introduced.
The ringleader and headquarters directors were all Chinese nationals. Investigators believe they recruited Korean members through recruiters, promising that “if you work at a voice-phishing call center in Thailand, you can live in a luxury villa complex and make a lot of money.” The prosecutors' office said that once the recruits arrived in Thailand, their passports were taken and they were made to participate in the crimes.
Working with South Korean police and other agencies, Thai police arrested 21 members, including 20 South Koreans, at an office in a pool villa in Pattaya on June 21 last year. However, those who had secured the victims' personal information database, crime scripts and a network supplying mule accounts, including the ringleader, fled. They recruited new Korean members and rebuilt the criminal operation's base in about 10 days.
On August 6 of the same year, Thai police arrested nine more members, including eight South Koreans, at offices including one disguised as a car rental company. Four Korean members who had fled around the time of the two raids were also caught, bringing the total number of South Koreans arrested to 32. Both crackdowns were reportedly prompted by reports from insiders about abuse.
The prosecutors' office said it confirmed that the same crime scripts and accounts used to receive victims' money were used at both bases, and secured evidence including Telegram announcement groups. It said this proved that the same criminal organization had moved locations and continued its crimes.
The 21 Koreans indicted earlier received prison sentences ranging from five years and six months to 13 years, based on appellate court rulings. The sentences of 15 have been finalized, while the remaining six are undergoing proceedings at the final appeal stage.
The cases involving four other Korean members have been transferred to the offices with jurisdiction and are under review, while one member has not yet been repatriated to South Korea.
The prosecutors' office plans to request the extradition of the Chinese ringleader and one headquarters director serving prison sentences in Thailand. It also plans to continue pursuing two Chinese headquarters directors who have not yet been arrested through international cooperation.
[email protected] Park Seong-hyeon Reporter