Man who posed as wealthy patron to defraud internet streamers gets 7 years

A man in his 30s who posed as a wealthy patron by showering female internet broadcasters with large donations has been sentenced to seven years in prison for defrauding multiple victims of a combined 4.8 billion won ($3.39 million).

The first criminal division of the Suwon High Court, presided over by Chief Judge Shin Hyeon-il, overturned all lower-court rulings in the appeal of the defendant, identified only as A, and handed down a single seven-year sentence on charges including violation of the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes (fraud).

A had previously been tried separately in two fraud cases and received sentences of four years and three years, respectively, at the trial court level.

The appeals court found that the two cases constituted concurrent offenses requiring a single combined sentence, merged them and resentenced A to seven years.

A had been known as a "big spender" on internet broadcasting platforms, regularly sending large sums — including virtual gifts — to female streamers.

He was indicted on charges of defrauding multiple victims, including streamers and gift-card vendors, of a total of about 4.8 billion won between August 2023 and May last year.

A approached victims with promises such as offering weekly interest of 7 to 11 percent in exchange for loans he claimed were needed for money laundering, or pledging to make large donations to their broadcasts, and pocketed the money they handed over.

He also deceived gift-card vendors by promising to pay within one to two weeks if they provided cards on credit, defrauding them of hundreds of millions of won worth of merchandise.

In reality, A had accumulated debts of more than 2 billion won, largely from failed cryptocurrency investments, and had no regular source of income, the investigation found.

The money he received from victims was spent on gambling or used to pay off existing debts in a revolving scheme, the court confirmed.

"The defendant deceived victims by grossly exaggerating his parents' wealth and his own capabilities, or by falsely promising high returns, and used the proceeds for personal purposes including gambling — conduct that reflects very poor character," the court said in its ruling. "He repeatedly committed fraud despite having multiple prior convictions for similar offenses."

However, the court noted in mitigation that A had admitted to all charges and had repaid victims a combined total of about 1 billion won. It also took into account that the victims had shown some degree of negligence in contributing to their own losses by too readily believing in returns far above market interest rates before transferring their money.