BTS member Jungkook's W8.4b in shares nearly stolen during military service; Chinese hacking ringleader sentenced to 20 years

A Chinese national who led a hacking ring that attempted to steal 8.4 billion won ($6 million) worth of shares belonging to BTS member Jungkook — and defrauded wealthy Koreans, including major conglomerate chairmen, of nearly 40 billion won by stealing their identities — was sentenced to 20 years in prison Thursday.

The Seoul Central District Court's Criminal Division 31, presided over by Judge Park Jun-seok, handed down the 20-year sentence to the Chinese national, identified only as A, on charges including aggravated fraud under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes and violations of the Act on Promotion of Information and Communications Network Utilization and Information Protection.

A is accused of organizing a criminal hacking group overseas, including in Thailand, and from August 2023 hacking domestic websites and using illegally obtained personal data to siphon financial assets from victims.

The group activated prepaid mobile phones in victims' names without authorization, intercepted authentication codes and used them to access bank accounts, stock brokerage accounts and virtual asset exchange accounts. Targets included celebrities and wealthy Koreans such as major conglomerate chairmen.

Jungkook, who was serving in the military at the time, was among those targeted.

The group attempted to steal 8.4 billion won worth of Hybe shares held by Jungkook, but his agency detected the breach and froze the account, preventing any actual financial loss.

"Unlike ordinary voice phishing, the victims had their assets stolen while completely defenseless and through no fault of their own," the court said, adding that the crimes "shook the very foundation of South Korea's financial system, making them serious offenses that go beyond harm to individual victims."

Sixteen victims suffered actual financial losses, with total damages reaching approximately 39 billion won. Including amounts blocked mid-transfer, the full scale of the criminal operation was even larger.

Police, working with Interpol, arrested A in Thailand in May last year. He was extradited to South Korea in August of that year and indicted in September.