Lee Gyu-lee is a business writer at The Korea Times, focusing primarily on IT & telecommunications, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and KOTRA. Prior to this, she has covered a wide range of cultural news, from film, television and K-pop to lifestyle and fashion.
President vows crackdown on overseas scams
President Lee Jae Myung has a video call with a Korean task force based in Cambodia at the Special Task Force on Transnational Crime’s office in Seoul, Monday. Courtesy of presidential office
By Lee Gyu-lee
President Lee Jae Myung has ordered a sweeping public campaign across Southeast Asia to deter crimes targeting Korean nationals.
Presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jung shared in a written briefing that Lee visited the Special Task Force on Transnational Crime’s office at Government Complex Seoul on Monday morning to encourage its staff.
During the visit, the president was briefed that reports of various fraud schemes, including voice phishing, have dropped sharply since the task force was launched.
“Scams of all kinds are becoming increasingly sophisticated, destroying people’s lives,” Lee said, instructing officials to continue taking an uncompromising approach toward scam operations based overseas.
“Work closely with local media in Southeast Asia to spread the clear message that anyone who messes with Koreans will face total ruin.”
Briefed on the recent crackdown in Cambodia and the largest repatriation of Korean suspects to date, Lee emphasized the importance of close, seamless interagency cooperation that breaks down bureaucratic silos.
Lee also had a video call with the Korean task force dispatched to Cambodia, thanking them for their hard work in tough conditions far from their families.
“The entire nation is grateful for what you do, so you should take pride in your work,” he said.
Lee instructed officials to fully support the Cambodia-based team with additional budget and personnel, saying, “Tell us what you need.”
The task force serves as an interagency control tower involving 10 agencies, including the National Intelligence Service, the prosecution and the police.
Most recently, the task force oversaw the repatriation of 73 Korean criminal suspects from Cambodia in a single operation, the largest number on record.