Couple gets 15 and 9 years for $7.2 million romance scam

A South Korean couple has received significant prison sentences for orchestrating a large-scale romance scam that defrauded over 100 individuals of approximately 10.1 billion won (about $7.2 million USD). The Ulsan District Court sentenced the husband, identified as Kang, to 15 years in prison and his wife, identified as Ahn, to 9 years for charges including organizing a criminal group and fraud.

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The defendants' criminal conduct and methods, and the scale of the damage, are very bad, and their blameworthiness is high.

The court found the couple's crimes to be particularly egregious due to their nature, methods, and the substantial financial losses inflicted upon victims. "The defendants' criminal conduct and methods, and the scale of the damage, are very bad, and their blameworthiness is high," the court stated. It also noted that while victims have expressed extreme distress and called for severe punishment, the defendants have made no efforts toward restitution.

Ahn had claimed she was coerced into participating by her husband, but the court rejected this defense, determining that she voluntarily joined the criminal organization and played a central role. The couple allegedly established an office in Cambodia and operated a voice phishing organization from January 2024 to January of the previous year. They used deepfake technology to create virtual personas to deceive their victims.

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The court also noted that while victims have expressed extreme distress and called for severe punishment, the defendants have made no efforts toward restitution.

Initially apprehended in Cambodia in February of last year, the couple managed to evade authorities, reportedly undergoing plastic surgery to alter their appearances. They were recaptured in July of the same year and repatriated to South Korea earlier this year. Victims present at the sentencing urged prosecutors to appeal the sentences, expressing their intent to submit petitions for stricter punishment in the appellate court.

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The court determined that Ahn voluntarily joined the criminal organization and played a central and core role.