A 30-year-old South Korean man, was sentenced to six years of imprisonment for a concert ticket scam involving famous K-pop celebrities concert as IU, BLACKPINK, and Lim Young Woong. The concert ticket scammer dwindled nearly 595 million won ($4,50,000) from the victims.
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A man who defrauded fans of K-pop stars IU and BLACKPINK by selling hundreds of millions of fake concert tickets has been handed a six-year prison sentence. The dramatic downfall of the ticket scammer culminated in the severe judgment delivered by Judge Lee Jong-min of the Seoul Central District Court.
IU and BLACKPINK Concert Ticket Scams
The defendant, identified as Mr. Kim was found guilty of perpetrating a large-scale fraud that involved the sale of counterfeit tickets to concerts of popular K-pop artists including IU, BLACKPINK, and Lim Young Woong.
The fraudulent activities extended to over 130 instances, where he exploited eager fans through misleading advertisements, claiming to sell K-pop concert tickets. Mr. Kim’s deceptive efforts spanned from May to August 2022.
Using deceptive techniques, in 2022, Mr. Kim (the accused) targeted Lim Young-woong’s concert tickets. Through 80 transactions, managed to swindle more than 200 million won (about 150,000 USD). And, guess what! The scammer didn’t stop there. He targeted fans by offering to transfer IU concert tickets. He obtained the credit card details of the fans while selling fake IU and BLACKPINK concert tickets. Based on the details, he obtained bank loans and made crypto investments in people’s money.
Furthermore, Mr. Kim’s fraudulent activities extended beyond concert tickets to include a diverse array of items, such as camera sales, game money recharge, and department store gift cards.
Seoul Central District Court’s Judgement
The Seoul Central District Court sentenced the defendant, Mr. Kim, to six years in prison for his involvement in the IU and BLACKPINK ticket scam. The court emphasized the reprehensible conduct of the accused and found him guilty.
The Seoul Central District Court’s judgment by Judge Lee Jong-min is given below:
“The defendant’s criminal conduct is improper, and the number of victims and the scale of damage are considerable. Even after being indicted for fraud and receiving a trial, he continued to commit fraud, and corresponding punishment is necessary as he used the proceeds for gambling and coin investments.”
“The court has decided that he should receive a punishment on par with (the severity of) his crime”, was the concluding verdict of the court, sentencing a 6-year jail to the accused.
The six-year prison sentence handed down to the perpetrator of the IU and BLACKPINK ticket scam marks a significant milestone in the pursuit of South Korea’s justice and accountability. It sends a powerful message about the unwavering commitment to protecting the rights and interests of fans and upholding the integrity of the K-pop community.
Recent Incidents Of Similar Ticket Scams
There have been several incidents where scalpers have attempted to resell IU’s concert tickets illegally.
Earlier, Mr. A (28), who was indicted on fraud charges for selling fake IU concert tickets was sentenced to 1 year and 2 months of imprisonment in year 2019.
Owing to such incidents, Korean trot singer Lim Young Woong canceled his ticket reservations for the January 2024 concert, suspecting tickets had been reserved by ticket scalpers. Singer Jang Beom-june’s agency also canceled ticket reservations for 10 concerts. He posted on his socials that an online raffle will be held limiting one ticket per person.