South Korean prosecutors are set to process the cases of 49 citizens suspected of operating illegal online casino sites and operating voice phishing scams from the Philippines.
The South Korean news broadcaster TV Chosun and the newspaper Chosun Ilbo reported that the National Police Agency (NPA) announced that the group was flown in from Manila’s Ninoy Aquino International Airport to Incheon International Airport on the afternoon of September 3 for repatriation.
Officers and airport authorities cleared an entire arrival hall to escort the suspects through the facility.
South Korean Casino Site Operators Began Work in 2018, Say Police
The NPA stated that its officers had collaborated with Filipino police forces and Interpol to facilitate the arrests.
A spokesperson said that 10 members of the group are thought to be the masterminds behind a large, unnamed online casino site.
The site, the NPA said, has links to organized crime networks. Officers think the casino site in question launched in 2018 and generated 5.3 trillion won (over $3.8 billion) in revenue.
A further 17 members, police think, ran smaller illegal online gambling sites. These (also unnamed) illegal gambling sites generated combined profits worth around 10.7 trillion won ($7.7 billion).
Most of the remaining individuals helped operate voice phishing call centers, police added. One individual is accused of embezzling 20 billion won ($14.4 million) from a South Korean company some 16 years ago.
The voice phishing ring, meanwhile, succeeded in duping 1,322 victims into sending money to its accounts.
Journalists wrote that they saw “men and women of all ages” in the group as police escorted the suspects (all unnamed) through the airport.
The NPA sent the repatriated suspects to 23 police stations across the country, with prosecutors now set to review case materials.
Park Jae-suk, the National Police Agency’s Director of International Cooperation, told reporters that there had been a “sharp increase” in the number of South Koreans who move overseas to run illegal gambling networks and scam rings.
The director said that such criminals have mainly headed to Southeast Asian nations, “including the Philippines.”
Police Planned Operation in June
The NPA said that it began planning raids in the Philippines back in June, working alongside the Philippine Bureau of Immigration.
The South Korean Embassy in the Philippines also worked with the officers on the case. Interpol had previously issued red notices for a number of the suspects.
The agency said that it dispatched over 100 officers, including anti-terrorism experts, to ensure the safe handover of the suspects.
It heralded its operation as “a symbolic achievement in the fight against crime, achieved through international cooperation.”
Earlier this month, Kangwon Land, the operator of the country’s only casino catering to domestic passport-holders, said it was launching a residential center for those suffering from gambling addiction.
The center is operating an initial pilot this month. If this proves successful, Kangwon Land will look to launch a nationwide network of residential clinics.
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South Korean prosecutors are set to process the cases of 49 citizens suspected of operating illegal online casino sites and operating voice phishing scams from the Philippines. The South Korean news broadcaster TV Chosun and the newspaper Chosun Ilbo reported that the National Police Agency (NPA) announced that the group was flown in from Manila’s
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