Men convicted of extorting illegal foreigners using fake immigration IDs

By Chyung Eun-ju, Park Si-soo

An appeals court on Wednesday convicted two Korean men who used fake immigration official IDs to extort undocumented foreigners.

The Daegu High Court upheld a lower court’s ruling, demanding the accused be put behind bars for three years for violation of laws regarding special robbery.

According to the court, the two, acting as immigration officials, raided a studio in Daegu in February and caught five undocumented foreigners. The duo offered a deal to the foreigners who feared arrest, taking their cell phones, jewelry and other valuables in return for covering up their illegal stay.

The two told police they targeted undocumented foreigners because they were unlikely to call police.