South Korea busts Vietnamese labor fraud ring.

On June 23, police in Thong-young city, Kyeongnam province, about 400km south of Seoul, arrested eight Vietnamese women involved in a scam ring that defrauded Vietnamese people of over 4 billion won.

South Korean television channel Chosun TV reported on the incident on June 23. (Photo: Pham Duy/Vietnam+)

According to investigations by VNA reporters, local police said that among the eight suspects, there is a 37-year-old woman who came to South Korea through marriage and has now obtained South Korean citizenship, playing a leading role in this fraud ring.

In June 2014, this individual established a "shell company" and advertised on social media platforms used by the Vietnamese community in South Korea, claiming to be able to help people from Vietnam come to South Korea with work visas for a fee of 5 to 9 million won (approximately 100-180 million VND). Assisting this individual was a 27-year-old woman acting as a broker, along with six other Vietnamese women whose job was to find and introduce potential clients.

Using the above tactics, between June and December 2014, these individuals defrauded 143 Vietnamese people of a total of 210 million won (approximately 4.2 billion VND). After paying each person who introduced them 500,000 won (approximately 10 million VND), the remaining money was sent to their families in Vietnam and spent lavishly on personal expenses by the ringleader and intermediaries.

Based on complaints from several Vietnamese victims living and working in Thong-young City, the police conducted an investigation and arrested the individuals involved in this fraud ring. Local police have now filed charges against seven suspects, including the ringleader and intermediary, who have been detained; five others have been released on bail pending further investigation; and one suspect has not been charged and is out on bail but is prohibited from leaving South Korea.

Earlier this April, police in Busan, South Korea, also arrested six individuals involved in a scam that defrauded 37 Vietnamese people using a similar method, stealing a total of 150 million won (approximately 3 billion VND).

However, advertisements and classifieds for matchmaking services with similar fraudulent content and methods are still appearing on some social media sites and forums for Vietnamese people in South Korea. Authorities advise everyone to be vigilant to avoid becoming victims of these scammers.

According to VNA