On November 10, 2026, South Korea’s Daejeon Police agency announced the arrest of 14 members of a fraudulent organization that impersonated hospital officials to commit various “no-show” crimes.
According to the reports, the Daejeon police have also arrested the leader of the organization, referred to as leader A. Authorities detained 13 people belonging to a group that allegedly posed as hospital officials to run a phishing scam involving proxy item purchases.
According to the Police, A and the other members are accused of being part of a 450 million won scam. The group has scammed over 15 people between October 2024 and last month.
The scam was done through phishing calls impersonating hospital officials.
According to The Chosun Daily, members of the criminal organisation would call manufacturers of suffocation fire extinguisher bags and would say, “We need to place a bulk order for hospital fire prevention," just to gain their trust. They then proceeded to ask the victims to send money to a third party under the pretense of delivery procedures.
Businesses across the country fell victim to the scam, ranging from small- and medium-sized hospital suppliers to specialized manufacturers of suffocation fire extinguishing bags.
The investigation found that the group had set up local offices in Vietnam, the Philippines and Cambodia. The group had distinct roles in management, recruitment, and consultation. They used fake names and worked together to avoid getting caught. They also had a code of conduct. All those arrested were in their 20s and 30s and were found to know each other or have links.
Leader A is also charged with violating the Narcotics Control Act because of purchasing and using ketamine and ecstasy in Daejeon and South Chungcheong Province during his stay in South Korea.
According to the reports, the police began investigating a drug case last year in November, and it took them almost a year to uncover clues about the organization and finally arrest the members as well as their leader.
The police have frozen around 47.9 million Korean Won in criminal proceeds to help recover funds for the victims. They are also working with INTERPOL to expand the investigation, issuing red notices for 12 individuals to track down the remaining members hiding abroad.
(Rh/ARC)