- Suspected ringleader was arrested on April 3, but networks remain active.
- Gang says it can arrange deaths that look like fatal accidents.
- Criminals demand deposits in USDT, vow to send video footage of attacks.
The arrest of the alleged ringleader behind a network of cryptocurrency-fuelled “revenge agencies” has failed to halt a market for on-demand harassment and violence, with operators continuing to solicit clients online days later.
Police detained the suspect on April 3, accusing him of coordinating operations that paid as little as $300 in Tether’s dollar-pegged stablecoin USDT for acts such as smearing rotting food and human waste on victims’ doorsteps.
But Korean-language online advertisements posted on Monday, as seen by DL News, were still promoting a menu of services, including intimidation, assault, and even murder disguised as accidents, with would-be clients directed to Telegram and asked to pay deposits in the dollar-pegged stablecoin.
And on April 12, South Korean newspaper Chosun Ilbo spoke to an agency operator who even offered to kill people in exchange for USDT.
Police have spent weeks tracking these revenge agencies, carrying out raids and arrests in Busan, Gyeonggi Province, and Seoul. In most cases, police say, masterminds ask for payments in USDT, and use the same stablecoin to pay convicted criminals to carry them out.
‘Settling scores’
“I can help with debt resolution, settling adultery scores, school or workplace bullying, and all other personal grievances,” wrote one “agency” on X, in a post seen by DL News dated April 13.
DL News has decided not to link to these posts, which may contain harmful or distressing content.
The post’s authors wrote the agency had a “six-year track record.” The poster offered to carry out “acts of terror” on their clients’ behalf. They also said they would inject clients’ targets with narcotics or forge “public or private documents” upon request.
Chosun Ilbo reporter Jung Sang-hyuk spoke to one of these operators via Telegram.
When Jung made a preliminary enquiry about prices, the operator reportedly immediately replied by asking: “Would you like us to kill someone and make it look like an accidental death?”
The operator said the agency could also arrange a “debilitating upper or lower body injury.”
The price would vary between $1,700 and $5,700 depending on the severity of the injury, the operator said.
“Our staff wear body cameras and film the results, which they send you via Telegram,” the operator explained. “We will get to work once you send us a 50% down payment in USDT.”
When Jung asked the operator how he could be sure this was not a scam, the operator directed him to a portal full of hundreds of testimonials.
“This service provides good value for money,” read one of the reviews.
Data leak
So far this year, police have investigated over 50 cases of retaliatory violence, graffiting of offensive messages, and defamation, making around 30 arrests.
They believe all of these cases involve crypto payments.
The agencies use a range of highly sophisticated methods, police say. One “employee” allegedly infiltrated an outsourcing company used by the courier service Baedal Minjok.
This reportedly enabled the illegal agency to steal personal information on victims, such as home addresses, allowing other operatives to carry out retaliatory terror attacks.
Baedal Minjok has apologised for the data leak and says it has cut ties with the outsourcing firm.
Tim Alper is a News Correspondent at DL News. Got a tip? Email him at tdalper@dlnews.com.
