You know what they say: crime doesn’t pay… but apparently, it litters.
After five years on the run, an alleged cryptocurrency scammer in South Korea was finally caught.
Not through high-tech police work or an international manhunt though, but because he tossed a cigarette butt near a train station in Seoul.
Police originally stopped the man for littering. However when officers tried to write him up, things got weird.
He begged them to let him go “just this once.” Then, he pretended to take a fake phone call (Oscar-worthy, we’re sure).
Then, in true South African style, he even tried to bribe them.
At that point, the police knew something was up. A quick check revealed he wasn’t just a messy smoker, he was a wanted fugitive.
Turns out, the man (in his 60s) was wanted for allegedly defrauding 1,300 people out of a jaw-dropping 17.7 billion won (that’s about R240 million).
He now faces 10 fraud charges linked to his alleged cryptocurrency scheme.
In case you didn’t know, South Korea has seen a massive spike in crypto-related crime.
Just last year, police arrested over 200 people in what’s believed to be the country’s biggest-ever crypto scam, worth around $240 million.
So yeah, it’s wild out there in crypto land.
Word of advice: if you’re going to scam people out of millions and go on the run… maybe don’t get sloppy with a cigarette butt.
Karma’s got eyes everywhere.
