Two South Korean police officers charged in a $186 million cryptocurrency money laundering case

Two police officers in South Korea have been indicted for allegedly accepting bribes from operators of an illegal cryptocurrency exchange linked to a $186 million voice phishing money laundering case.

The Suwon District Prosecutor's Office's Criminal Division stated that the head of the Seoul Police Agency, "F," received $59,000 in bribes between July 2022 and February 2024, while senior officer "G" received $7,500 in cash and luxury goods during the same period. Both officers have been dismissed. Prosecutors allege that the two officers provided investigative information to criminals, introduced lawyers, requested the unfreezing of accounts involved in criminal activities, and assisted in contacting other law enforcement personnel in exchange for bribes.

It is reported that a criminal gang operated an illegal cash-to-cryptocurrency exchange disguised as a gift voucher store in affluent areas such as Gangnam in Seoul, converting proceeds from voice phishing scams into USDT stablecoins. Authorities have frozen approximately $1.1 million in illegal assets, including $600,000 in USDT.