Fake volunteer group arrested after stealing 40.9 billion won in crypto investment scheme

Members of a criminal ring that disguised itself as a volunteer group to lure victims into a multilevel cryptocurrency investment scam worth more than 40 billion won ($26.9 million) have been arrested, the Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency said on Wednesday.

The provincial police agency referred seven members — one of them the alleged ringleader, a Chinese national — of the organization to prosecutors on charges of fraud, organizing a criminal group and violating the Act on the Regulation of Conducting Fund-Raising Business Without Permission.

The suspects allegedly swindled 436 people, including wealthy individuals and older adults, out of a cumulative 40.9 billion won between December 2024 and March by enticing them with promises of exceptionally high returns.

The group reportedly created social media accounts with stolen profile photos to falsely introduce themselves to victims as members of a volunteer organization called the “Brilliance Team.”

The members of the criminal ring earned victims’ trust through regular contact. They then analyzed each victim’s wealth and influence within their community to identify the most promising targets.

“You can earn returns of more than 1,000 percent by investing in AIXT before it is listed on a major overseas cryptocurrency exchange,” the suspects reportedly told their victims, referring to the cryptocurrency promoted by the group.

They returned investors’ principal and high interest during the first three months of contact. 

The criminal ring eventually expanded into a multilevel marketing model, with existing members acting as regional branch heads — with a total of 11 branches nationwide — and recruiting new members. They even held promotional events at major hotels. 

AIXT, however, was only temporarily listed on a little-known overseas exchange, which itself had an unclear regulatory status. Later, trading for the cryptocurrency was abruptly terminated without notice.

The suspects repeatedly told investors that the coin would soon be listed on larger exchanges, then shut down all branches and went off the grid.

Before being caught, the members plotted to flee overseas, where they planned to launch another ghost cryptocurrency scam, according to investigators.

Police launched an investigation into the criminal ring in March. Law enforcement imposed overseas travel bans on the suspects and carried out search and seizure operations at 15 locations across the country.

Authorities also analyzed about 5,700 bank accounts, including those opened under borrowed names, which were used to launder criminal proceeds. They also froze cryptocurrency worth about 560 million won through preindictment forfeiture and asset preservation measures.

“This was a particularly malicious crime in which the suspects exploited people’s goodwill toward volunteer work to build personal trust before betraying them,” a police official said. “Investment offers that guarantee unusually high returns without any risk of losing the principal are highly likely to be fraudulent.”

BY KO SEUNG-PYO [[email protected]]