Scammers force South Korean man to write 45 fake confession letters

A gang of cybercriminals posing as prosecutors lured a South Korean man in his 30s to a motel room after claiming his identity had been stolen and an arrest warrant issued. The victim took paid leave, was told not to tell anyone, and was forced to write 45 self-reflection letters while the scammers stole about $21,000, police said.

How the scam began

The victim, from the Gyeonggi region in South Korea, was told his identity had been stolen, used in a crime, and that an arrest warrant had been issued against him. He took paid leave from October 20th and heeded advice not to tell anyone about the proceedings. He was also persuaded to check into a motel rather than undergo a summary investigation in a detention center.

To tighten control, the criminals instructed him to buy an additional mobile phone and install a malicious remote-control app. The group could then intercept all his communications and any potential cry for help. When the victim tried to verify communication channels, he contacted South Korea's Financial Supervisory Service and the 112 emergency hotline, but both were intercepted and answered by scammers impersonating officials.

Forced confessions and stolen money

During the isolation, the man was ordered to write 45 A4-length self-reflection letters in his phone's notepad over a period of three days. The scammers reportedly summoned him to submit regular submissions for review and allowed breaks only for eating and sleeping. By offering staged phishing training, they manipulated him into thinking he had to prove he was a legitimate fraud victim.

Under the pretext of investigating suspicious accounts, the scammers persuaded him to take out loans and transfer 31 million won, about $21,000. They then sought to extract a further 42 million won, about $29,000, through another loan application. Police arrived while he was still awaiting approval for the second loan, but the first amount had already been transferred to the criminals.

Police break through

South Korean police identified the man using information provided by a joint response team dealing with telecommunications fraud. They tracked the installation of the malicious app, which had suddenly disappeared off the grid. The officers struggled to get through at first because the victim had been instructed not to answer authentic-looking calls, despite multiple attempts by police.

One officer finally managed to strike a chord with the victim by playing police radio transmissions, breaking through the psychological control imposed by the criminals without further alarming him. Police have not announced any arrests in connection with this particular case, as reported by The Chosun Daily.

Sources: Cybernews