Police have uncovered more than 60 cases and arrested 50 suspects in connection with so-called "revenge-for-hire" crimes coordinated through Telegram, as the phenomenon spreads nationwide.
According to the Korean National Police Agency on Tuesday, 14 additional cases of revenge-for-hire crimes were identified across the country since the last tally on January 2. This brings the total number of cases reported to 14 metropolitan and provincial police agencies to 67.
Suspects have been apprehended in 60 of these cases, with a total of 50 people arrested. Investigations are ongoing for the remaining seven cases, police said.
Of those arrested, 47 were individuals who directly carried out the crimes, while three were identified as intermediaries who ordered or coordinated the offenses. Notably, no additional crimes have been reported since the Seoul Yangcheon Police Station arrested one intermediary.
Police said investigations are continuing at the Seoul Yangcheon Police Station and regional investigation units across metropolitan and provincial police agencies, focusing on higher-level organizers. The aim is to track down not only those who carried out the crimes but also those who planned and directed the offenses through Telegram.
Earlier this month, Yangcheon police arrested and detained a man in his 40s surnamed Yeo, who allegedly infiltrated a Baemin outsourcing company by posing as a customer service representative, along with a man in his 30s surnamed Lee, identified as a higher-level coordinator. On January 3, police also detained a man in his 30s surnamed Jeong, suspected of being the ringleader.
Investigations revealed that the group received revenge terrorism requests from unidentified individuals through Telegram and committed crimes including smearing feces and scrawling graffiti on victims' front doors in Siheung, Gyeonggi Province, and Yangcheon-gu, Seoul. To obtain personal information such as victims' addresses, Yeo allegedly posed as a customer service representative at a Baedal Minjok outsourcing company and accessed approximately 1,000 personal records, according to police.
