A man in his 30s who was about to depart for Cambodia returned home from Incheon International Airport after police advised him to do so.
According to the Incheon International Airport Police Unit on the 16th, around 7 p.m. the previous day police blocked the departure of a man in his 30s, identified only as A, who was trying to board a flight departing for Cambodia at the boarding gate of Terminal 1 at Incheon Airport.
Earlier, after a spate of kidnappings and unlawful confinements targeting Koreans in Cambodia, police said on the 14th they would deploy officers forward to the departure gates at Incheon International Airport. The goal was to alert Korean passengers bound for Cambodia and to brief them on the realities of these crimes so they would not become entangled in employment scams or phishing schemes.
Accordingly, starting the previous day the airport police unit assigned four officers to the boarding gates for flights to Cambodia at Incheon Airport. They are conducting spot checks to see if any passengers are linked to crimes.
During the check, A told an officer, "I quit my main job and was taking a break, and a younger acquaintance I got to know through Telegram in the past sent me an airline boarding pass." However, A could not clearly explain the exact destination or lodging and hesitated to disclose the contents of the Telegram conversation.
Police urged, "Crime targeting Koreans is widespread in Cambodia, so please trust us and receive counseling," and A did not depart. Police plan to investigate whether A is actually connected to any crimes.