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Prosecutor Jung Min-young (36, 11th Bar Examination, left) and Investigator Kim Kyung-eun (38) of the Gunsan Branch of the Jeonju District Prosecutors' Office. / Photo via Reporter Jung Min-hoon

"Two suspects have fled overseas, and one has no record of departure?"

On February 3, while reviewing records of suspended prosecution cases at the Gunsan Branch of the Jeonju District Prosecutors' Office, Investigator Kim Kyung-eun (38) spotted a "crypto investment fraud case." The complaint had been filed back in 2018, with damages amounting to approximately 300 million won. Among the three suspects, two had fled abroad, and although the remaining one was presumed to be in the country, his location had been unconfirmed, leaving the case stalled for years. The statute of limitations was also nearing expiration. Reasoning that "with no record of departure, he must be somewhere in the country," Investigator Kim began tracing the tracks of suspect A (70, unemployed) on his own. His 18 months of experience in capturing non-executors of property penalties guided his intuition.

Investigator Kim examined A's tracks by manually cross-referencing visit logs at community service centers and medical records at public health centers. He focused on the fact that PCR testing and various quarantine measures were extensively conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic from 2020 to 2022, which allowed him to narrow down A's location to the Jeonbuk region.

The decisive clue came from basic pension application records. To receive the basic pension, applicants must personally visit a local community service center to register, and identity verification takes place during the consultation and application process. Guessing that A might be receiving the pension, Investigator Kim contacted a community service center in Jeonbuk, where A was presumed to reside, to verify his consultation logs. As a result, he confirmed that A had visited with his spouse, securing the breakthrough clue to pinpointing his location.

Believing that A was highly likely living with his spouse, Investigator Kim continued his inquiries around a specific residential area in Jeonju. He also conducted stakeouts on weekend evenings, pursuing the investigation entirely on his own initiative without any official orders. Investigator Kim was so dedicated to tracking down A that he even brought along his children, who wanted to spend time with their father, to the site. Following this persistent tracking, he finally spotted A driving a vehicle.

He immediately reported the investigation results to Prosecutor Jung Min-young (36, 11th Bar Examination). Given that the suspect's location was confirmed just as the statute of limitations was about to expire, he judged that the case could no longer be left sitting. Agreeing on the necessity to reopen the case, the prosecution made a formal decision to reactivate the investigation on March 9. Afterward, Prosecutor Jung conducted a supplementary investigation for two months through March and April, arrested the suspect on April 22, and detained him under a warrant three days later.

A was handed over to trial on charges of defrauding victims out of 305.1 million won by deceiving them with claims that "investing in B coin will bring huge profits, and even if losses occur, both the principal and losses will be fully covered." The prosecution specified A's crime period from December 31, 2015, to February 23, 2017, and concluded that there were nine victims. Prosecutor Jung stated, "Because A evaded justice for a long period, the statute of limitations for some of the charges had expired, making criminal punishment impossible." She added, "Among the eight additional victims, six could not receive relief because the statute of limitations had run out, and two had passed away. While another victim was identified during the investigation, that damage was not formally reported to investigative agencies and thus could not be included in the indictment. The number of victims was actually higher."

Although A has been brought to court, there is still a long way to go regarding asset recovery. Because this case did not involve virtual assets listed on a specific exchange but rather a structure combining crypto investment with multi-level marketing, tracing the flow of investment funds posed significant difficulties. Based on materials kept by the victims, the prosecution identified B coin by analyzing registration documents of a paper company established in Hong Kong, but the victims' money could not be found.

The prosecution has explained to the victims how to utilize the restitution order system and continues to provide support, including supplying necessary documents for future litigation processes. Investigator Kim said, "I personally attended A's first trial held on the 20th of last month," adding, "Among the victims, there were those who suffered losses after investing their loans or marriage funds for their children." He continued, "Many had been blaming themselves and feeling guilty for a long time, and some even shed tears upon seeing A standing in the courtroom. There was a sense of comfort in the fact that, even if they cannot get all their money back, the wrongdoer is finally facing punishment."

Regarding this case, Prosecutor Jung emphasized, "The police and the prosecution are not in a relationship of mere mutual checks, but rather one of cooperation based on each other's strengths," adding, "As one agency can complement what the other missed, I believe supplementary investigation is a vital mechanism that enhances the completeness and accuracy of an investigation."

                                                                                                          Jung Min-hoon