Thai Police Dismantle $15M Crypto Scam Ring Targeting South Korean Victims

Thai authorities have dismantled a sophisticated $15 million cryptocurrency fraud operation that exploited over 870 South Korean nationals. The Seoul Metropolitan Police arrested 25 members of the 'Lungo Company,' a criminal syndicate employing romance scams, fake crypto investments, and fraudulent lottery compensation schemes.

The ringleader and eight core operatives were separately apprehended by Thai police and await extradition. Investigators noted the group's unprecedented use of multi-layered laundering tactics, including chain-hopping across blockchains and leveraging unregulated OTC brokers in Thai tourist hubs like Pattaya to convert illicit crypto gains into fiat currency.

Cybercrime expert David Sehyeon Baek characterized the operation as a paradigm shift in financial fraud, combining psychological manipulation with advanced blockchain obfuscation techniques. Victims were coerced into depositing funds on spoofed platforms or purchasing worthless digital assets under false pretenses of data breach compensations.