{"investigation":{"slug":"seoul-northern-coin-fraud-ring-91-3-billion-won-scheme","entity_name":"Seoul Northern Coin Fraud Ring (91.3 Billion Won Scheme)","trust_score":2,"severity_base":null,"score_modifier":0,"confidence":0.7,"status":"draft","content_type":"investigation","summary":"A South Korean fraud ring led by two individuals identified in press reports only as Lee (64) and Kim (53) allegedly issued and sold roughly 26-30 worthless cryptocurrencies to victims recruited from stock-investment loss chat rooms between May 2022 and March 2023, taking in an estimated 91.3 billion won (approximately $63 million). On August 19, 2026, the Seoul Northern District Court convicted eight defendants, sentencing the two ringleaders to 14 years in prison each and co-defendants to terms ranging from one year (suspended) to eight years. This is a criminal case with a court verdict already rendered, not merely an allegation; it is being tracked because the underlying tokens, sales operation, and any affiliated apps or exchanges may still pose risk to the public.","sections":[{"content":"The Seoul Northern District Court issued a verdict against eight defendants on charges including fraud, violation of South Korea's Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes, violation of the Electronic Financial Transactions Act, violation of the Act on Reporting and Using Specific Financial Information, and violation of the Act on the Regulation of Conducting Fund-Raising Business Without Permission (the 'quasi-loan' law). The two alleged ringleaders, identified in reporting only by surname and age as Lee (64) and Kim (53), were each sentenced to 14 years in prison. The head of the group's sales organization received 8 years, four other accomplices received sentences of 4 to 7 years, and one defendant whose involvement was limited to unauthorized fund-raising activity received a suspended one-year sentence with 80 hours of community service. The court reportedly stated that the deceptive methods used were 'sophisticated' and that the offense was 'considerably bad,' adding that defendants showed little genuine remorse and in some cases attempted to destroy evidence or minimize their involvement during the investigation. Prosecutors had sought forfeiture of 23.2 billion won in proceeds, which the court reportedly rejected.","heading":"Court Verdict and Sentencing","sources":[{"url":"https://en.sedaily.com/society/2026/09/12/coin-fraud-ring-gets-heavy-sentences-for-913-billion-won","name":"Coin Fraud Ring Gets Heavy Sentences for 91.3 Billion Won Scheme - Seoul Economic Daily","type":"news_article","credibility":2},{"url":"https://www.edaily.co.kr/News/Read?newsId=04372246645579136","name":"가짜 백서에 '유령 코인'까지…'913억 사기' 주범 징역 14년 - Edaily","type":"news_article","credibility":2}],"severity":"critical"},{"content":"According to court reporting, the group created fake whitepapers and business plans by copying material from existing companies and recruited nominees to lend their names for issuing and selling nearly 30 cryptocurrencies with no realistic business plans behind them, over a period from May 2022 to March 2023. The organization allegedly targeted victims who had already lost money in stock-investment chat rooms, approaching them with promises to help recover losses before selling them the worthless tokens. Salespeople reportedly received commissions of roughly 80% of sales revenue, an unusually high rate consistent with a high-pressure or pyramid-style distribution structure. When overseas exchange listings proved difficult, the group allegedly manipulated investor-facing apps to falsely display that coins had been received/transferred without actually delivering them, and conducted self-trading (wash trading) to artificially inflate prices on exchanges the group controlled or influenced. Marketing materials allegedly included specific inflated return claims, such as one coin advertised with a 'locked-in return of 2,230%' priced at 3,000 won against a claimed market price of 67,000 won, and another promoted with 20x return potential. Total funds that flowed into collection accounts used to sell the coins were tallied by investigators at approximately 91.3 billion won (reported elsewhere as 91.36 billion won).","heading":"Alleged Scheme Mechanics","sources":[{"url":"https://en.sedaily.com/society/2026/09/12/coin-fraud-ring-gets-heavy-sentences-for-913-billion-won","name":"Coin Fraud Ring Gets Heavy Sentences for 91.3 Billion Won Scheme - Seoul Economic Daily","type":"news_article","credibility":2},{"url":"https://www.edaily.co.kr/News/Read?newsId=04372246645579136","name":"가짜 백서에 '유령 코인'까지…'913억 사기' 주범 징역 14년 - Edaily","type":"news_article","credibility":2}],"severity":"critical"},{"content":"Public reporting on this case does not identify the two ringleaders by full name, referring to them only as 'Lee' (age 64) and 'Kim' (age 53), which is consistent with South Korean press practice of withholding full names of criminal defendants absent a specific public-interest disclosure order. One of the main defendants is reported to have previously operated a bill-discounting (commercial paper/note discounting) finance business in Seoul's Jung District before moving into the cryptocurrency business. No specific coin names, project brands, or exchange names tied to this ring were identified in the available English- or Korean-language reporting reviewed for this investigation. Readers should not assume any connection between this ring and other, separately reported South Korean crypto-fraud figures such as 'Jonbur Kim' / 'Coin King' Park, whose case involves a different token (POD) and different alleged amounts; no source reviewed here establishes any link between the two matters.","heading":"Identity of Ringleaders and Background","sources":[{"url":"https://www.edaily.co.kr/News/Read?newsId=04372246645579136","name":"가짜 백서에 '유령 코인'까지…'913억 사기' 주범 징역 14년 - Edaily","type":"news_article","credibility":2}],"severity":"medium"},{"content":"This case has been described in Korean financial press as one of the larger crypto-fraud sentencings in South Korea in 2026, alongside other unrelated cases such as the Delio CEO's 15-year sentence for an alleged $50 million fraud and a separate case involving a defendant sentenced to 20 years for a 11 billion won ('원금 두배와 배당금 약속') coin fraud. These parallel cases are noted here only for context on the current South Korean regulatory and judicial environment for crypto fraud; they are not alleged to be connected to the Seoul Northern District ring.","heading":"Context: South Korean Crypto Fraud Enforcement in 2026","sources":[{"url":"https://www.theblock.co/news/regulation/2026-08-13-south-korea-sentences-delio-ceo-411688","name":"South Korea sentences Delio CEO to 15 years in prison for $50 million crypto fraud: report - The Block","type":"news_article","credibility":2}],"severity":"low"}],"timeline":[{"date":"2022-05","event":"Alleged start of the coin-issuance and sales scheme, according to prosecutors' case period.","source":"Edaily","source_url":"https://www.edaily.co.kr/News/Read?newsId=04372246645579136"},{"date":"2023-03","event":"Alleged end of the coin-issuance and sales scheme, according to prosecutors' case period.","source":"Edaily","source_url":"https://www.edaily.co.kr/News/Read?newsId=04372246645579136"},{"date":"2026-08-19","event":"The Seoul Northern District Court issued its verdict, sentencing eight defendants to prison terms or suspended sentences.","source":"Edaily","source_url":"https://www.edaily.co.kr/News/Read?newsId=04372246645579136","date_evidence":"서울북부지법은 지난달 19일 사기와 전자금융거래법 위반... 등 혐의로 기소된 8명에게 실형 또는 집행유예를 선고했다. (article published 2026-09-11, referring to '지난달 19일' i.e. the 19th of the prior month)"},{"date":"2026-09-11","event":"South Korean press (Edaily, Seoul Economic Daily) publicly reported the sentencing.","source":"Seoul Economic Daily / Edaily","source_url":"https://en.sedaily.com/society/2026/09/12/coin-fraud-ring-gets-heavy-sentences-for-913-billion-won","date_evidence":"등록 2026-09-11 오후 3:46:10 (article registration timestamp); Seoul Economic Daily also reported the ruling with the legal community announcing it 'on the 11th'"}],"sources_used":[{"url":"https://en.sedaily.com/society/2026/09/12/coin-fraud-ring-gets-heavy-sentences-for-913-billion-won","name":"Coin Fraud Ring Gets Heavy Sentences for 91.3 Billion Won Scheme - Seoul Economic Daily","type":"news_article","archive_url":"http://web.archive.org/web/20260914130627/https://en.sedaily.com/society/2026/09/12/coin-fraud-ring-gets-heavy-sentences-for-913-billion-won","credibility":2,"archive_timestamp":"2026-09-14T13:06:27+00:00"},{"url":"https://www.edaily.co.kr/News/Read?newsId=04372246645579136","name":"가짜 백서에 '유령 코인'까지…'913억 사기' 주범 징역 14년 - Edaily","type":"news_article","archive_url":"http://web.archive.org/web/20260911071230/https://www.edaily.co.kr/News/Read?newsId=04372246645579136","credibility":2,"archive_timestamp":"2026-09-11T07:12:30+00:00"},{"url":"https://www.theblock.co/news/regulation/2026-08-13-south-korea-sentences-delio-ceo-411688","name":"South Korea sentences Delio CEO to 15 years in prison for $50 million crypto fraud: report - The Block","type":"news_article","archive_url":null,"credibility":2,"archive_error":"error:no-request","archive_status":"unarchivable","archive_timestamp":null}],"source_tags":[],"addresses":[],"reviewed":false,"reviewed_by":null,"model_used":"claude-code-investigator","created_at":"2026-09-14T12:32:42.936364+00:00","updated_at":"2026-09-14T15:58:21.242352+00:00"}}