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- South Korean police arrested suspects tied to multimillion-dollar crypto laundering.
- Investigators linked thousands of accounts to phishing scam proceeds.
- Authorities seized assets while pursuing fugitive network leader internationally.
South Korean police have broken up a cryptocurrency laundering scheme, which allegedly facilitated nearly $17 million from phishing and investment scams. The operation resulted in the arrest of dozens and the discovery of a huge network of accounts that were used to launder illegal money via digital asset exchanges. The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency caught 23 people involved in the scheme, said local media outlet Newsis. Two major figures have been arrested, and the hunt for the man believed to be the ringleader is continuing with him remaining in hiding—this time overseas.
The group was involved in phishing scams for a Cambodian crime syndicate, investigators said. Members allegedly changed the criminal proceeds into the USDT and sent it to domestic and overseas cryptocurrency exchanges. The network was in operation from February 2024 to April 2025, according to police. During that time, suspects made 16.8 billion won worth of cryptocurrency transactions, or roughly $11.1 million, to hide the source of the money.
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Thousands of Accounts Linked to Fraud Proceeds
The laundry operation enabled the authorities to find evidence of 265 phishing and investment scam cases. Police could trace some $17 million worth of stolen money back to the big scheme. Police said there were approximately 11,300 accounts the suspects went through to transfer money from exchange to exchange and other means. The number of accounts was too many and a list of transactions and their owners was not possible to maintain.
Investigators eventually found links between the accounts and the fraud organization in Cambodia. They did research to assist the police in identifying help from those who allegedly assisted in the movement of illegal funds. About 650 million won (about $430,000) was apparently used in a crime, and was recovered by police who were arrested during the investigation. The man suspected of being the ring leader also has a Red Notice from the Interpol, authorities also said.
Additional Arrests Expand Investigation
Besides the main laundering case, the police has also arrested 33 other individuals, who were believed to be involved in illegal currency exchange using USDT. These are believed to have operated cryptocurrency exchange services with tourists and acquaintances without any licenses and authorisations. Investigators are now looking to see if those activities were linked to the bigger laundering scheme.
The authorities have not excluded any more arrests in the case. Investigators are also sifting through records of transactions and exchanges with the suspects. This is South Korea’s biggest case in recent years concerning cryptocurrency finance crimes. Authorities’ actions will aim to break up laundering networks and unauthorised exchange operators who facilitate the movement of illicit proceeds and cover-up of that money across the border using digital assets.
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