South Korean High Court Sends ‘Theme Park’ Crypto Fraudster to Jail for 12 Years

Legal South Korea

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Tim Alper

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Tim Alper

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Tim Alper is a British journalist and features writer who has worked at Cryptonews.com since 2018. He has written for media outlets such as the BBC, the Guardian, and Chosun Ilbo. He has also worked...

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November 27, 2024 22:00 EST

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A branch of the South Korean High Court has sent the head of an amusement park-themed crypto scam to prison for 12 years.

News1 reported that the Suwon High Court Criminal Division made the ruling on November 27, dismissing appeals from the prosecution and the man’s legal team.

South Korean High Court: No Reason to Change District Court Sentences

The unnamed fraudster, aged 63, was described as the CEO of an (also unnamed) company. A local District Court sentenced him to 12 years in jail earlier this year.

The court also found him guilty of violating crypto-related laws, as well as embezzlement and fraud.

The firm told would-be investors that it was using an altcoin to raise money to build a theme park in Cheorwon County, Gangwon Province.

In total, the scam amassed a total of $27.3 million from some 8,000 victims, who thought they were buying coins tied to the park’s value.

The High Court also upheld the District Court jail sentences of two of the firm’s former employees.

One of the employees was jailed for seven years for helping the former CEO plot the crime. The second was given a suspended prison term of 10 months for helping their former boss hide from the police.

The High Court judges ruled that “no new circumstances” had come to light since the District Court trial. Prosecutors wanted the court to extend the CEO’s 12-year sentence.

But the High Court judges said:

“The original sentence was neither too harsh nor too lenient. So the argments made by both sides, claiming that the original sentencing was unfair, are without merit.”

‘MLM Methods’

The court heard the firm used multi-level marketing methods to “attract investment funds” from citizens based all over the country.

At its peak, the company ran branches in the capital Seoul, as well as the cities of Busan, Daegu, and Ulsan.

Employees also “traveled around the country to hold briefing sessions” in the hope of “recruiting new investors.”

The CEO told the firm’s victims that parties in over a dozen “Southeast Asian countries” had pledged to invest over $21.5 billion in the project.

The plot, the CEO told victims, was located in a Civilian Control Zone. In South Korea, these areas are typically located within a few kilometers south of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ).

Limited Access

Seoul heavily limits civilian access to Civilian Control Zones as a result of security concerns about their proximity to the North Korean border.

Building on these zones is impossible without military permission. However, it appears the CEO duped investors into believing his firm had secured a permit for the project.

The court also heard that the man embezzled over $1.1 million of the firm’s “coin investment funds” by investing them in his acquaintances’ businesses, including a hand sanitizer provider.