"BTS's Jungkook money stolen?" Hacker who swindled ₩38 billion after targeting conglomerate chairmen, forcibly extradited from Thailand

Hacked telecom company data to open mobile phone accounts




The Ministry of Justice announced on the 22nd that it had forcibly extradited from Thailand the ringleader of a hacking organization who embezzled large sums of money by stealing the identities of wealthy individuals in Korea. Among the victims was reportedly by BTS member Jungkook.

According to the Ministry of Justice, the ringleader, identified as Mr. A, a Chinese national, organized a hacking crime ring overseas in places such as Thailand. From August 2023 to January last year, he hacked into telecom company websites and obtained the personal information of BTS' Jungkook, a conglomerate chairman, venture company CEOs, and others. Using their identities, they secretly opened mobile phone accounts.

Authorities investigated and found that Mr. A used these accounts to siphon money from victims' financial accounts and virtual asset accounts, stealing funds in the process. The Ministry of Justice reported that the damages amounted to around ₩38 billion (approx. $28 million).

While tracking Mr. A's whereabouts in cooperation with the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency and Interpol, the Ministry obtained intelligence that he had entered Thailand last April. They immediately submitted an emergency extradition request to Thai authorities. An emergency extradition request is a process by which a country asks the other party to secure custody of a suspect before formally requesting extradition.


The leader of a Chinese hacking organization
was forcibly repatriated from Thailand 
On the 22nd [Photo = Ministry of Justice]



Last month, the Ministry dispatched prosecutors and investigators to Thailand to discuss the extradition process timeline with the Office of the Attorney General and the police. As a result, Mr. A was secured four months after the emergency extradition request. He arrived in South Korea through Incheon International Airport around 5:5 a.m. on that day.

A Ministry of Justice official stated, "We will pursue and strictly punish overseas hacking, voice phishing, and online fraud organizations to the very end." The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency plans to interrogate. Mr. A soon and then apply for an arrest warrant.


Original article: Naver





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