A couple who stole 6.2 billion won in deposits from tenants in Daejeon and fled to the United States has been extradited and was ultimately handed over to prosecutors.
Daejeon Police Agency announced on the 13th that they detained and transferred A (45, male) and B (49, female) due to fraud charges at the end of last month. They are accused of deceiving 90 tenants from April 2019 to April 2023 in Daejeon, convincing them that they could sufficiently return their Jeonse deposits and embezzling approximately 6.2 billion won. The police believe the suspects purchased 11 multi-family dwellings and devised a gentrification scam. Gentrification refers to a situation where the collateral loans and tenant deposits exceed the actual value of the property, leaving the remaining value of the property vacant.
The couple fled to the United States before a complaint was filed in 2022 and lived in hiding for about two years. The police requested an Interpol red notice in August 2023 and captured them near Seattle, Washington, in September of last year, before extraditing them to South Korea on the 20th of last month. During police questioning, they reportedly stated, "We did not intend to commit Jeonse fraud," denying the charges.
Regarding their life on the run in the United States, they reportedly stated that it was "not an escape, but merely moving residences due to various circumstances." Early in their life in the U.S., it became known that they lived in luxury, staying in high-end dwellings in Atlanta and sending their son to an expensive private school, causing outrage among some victims.
One of their victimized tenants, C (in their 50s), was unable to retrieve a deposit of 80 million won and reportedly made an extreme choice in June 2023. On the day of their death, C was said to have told other tenants, "It's a sure loss to get the money back."
Recently, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) released information about the couple's deportation on its website along with photos from the time of their deportation.
A police official said, "We had completed the necessary investigations to ensure that the case could be promptly concluded once the suspects were extradited."