515 nabbed for involvement in prostitution ring

By Jung Min-ho

Police said Friday that they apprehended a total of 515 people for alleged involvement in a prostitution ring in Korea and overseas.

While 404 pimps and brokers are facing charges of engaging in prostitution using Korean women in the Philippines and Macau, 111 foreign women allegedly sold sex here, according to the National Police Agency.

The pimps and brokers recruited sex workers through websites, where they also promoted “sex tours” for Korean men, police said.

“Such crimes could tarnish the image of Korea,” a police officer said. “We plan to strengthen online monitoring to prevent them.”

The announcement was made after a special investigation into crimes involving foreigners from June 1 to Aug. 25.

Korean men’s “sex tours” to Southeast Asian countries have long been a problem.

To attract more Korean clients, many brokers run websites, where they can see photos of Southeast Asian women with Korean information about their age, rate per hour and the type of services they provide.

According to research released by the state-run Korean Institute of Criminology in 2013, Koreans rank among the top clients of prostitutes in Southeast Asia, ahead of Japanese and Chinese travelers.