Home > National > Social Affairs

Police arrest over 2,000 suspects in ongoing undercover sex crime operations

Published: 23 Sep. 2025, 16:25

The National Office of Investigation building in Seodaemun District, western Seoul, is seen on Jan. 14. [YONHAP]

Police have arrested 2,171 suspects through undercover operations since the system was introduced in September 2021 in response to digital sex crime cases such as the exploitative “Nth room” on Telegram, authorities said Tuesday.

Undercover investigations allow officers to withhold their police identity or assume false identities to collect evidence. Since the program began, police have carried out 765 undercover operations.

From January to August this year, they arrested 645 suspects, a 66.7 percent increase compared to 387 during the same period last year, according to the Korean National Police Agency.

The Daejeon Metropolitan Police Precinct’s cybercrime unit arrested three 15-year-olds in March last year, just three months after launching undercover operations.

The teenagers had created and run Telegram chat rooms called “Data sharing room” and “Composite photo room.” They allegedly produced and distributed 36,086 fake videos of acquaintances and female celebrities.

The chat rooms had 13,888 participants. Police arrested 235 additional users who made, shared or purchased the material.

Police also used undercover operations earlier this year to arrest the main operators of “Overlapping acquaintance room,” a Telegram channel that ignited public outrage by distributing fake sexual images of acquaintances.

The Telegram app logo is seen in this photo taken on Aug. 27, 2024. [REUTERS/YONHAP]

In June, police expanded undercover operations to include digital sex crimes targeting adults. Previously, investigations were limited to crimes against children and teenagers. Since then, police conducted 36 undercover operations into adult-targeted crimes and arrested 93 suspects, including one in custody.

In May, the South Gyeongsang Provincial Police Precinct’s cybercrime unit arrested a 15-year-old boy who allegedly created and distributed 590 manipulated images, including child sexual exploitation material that superimposed a female celebrity’s face onto nude photos.

Last month, the Gwangju Metropolitan Police Precinct arrested a 31-year-old man accused of blackmailing an adult victim by producing fake sexual images with the victim’s face placed on pornographic photos and threatening to distribute them.

Police are also preparing for crimes on platforms beyond Telegram.

“We are working through the [Cybercrime Investigation Division's] cyber international cooperation unit to make investigations possible on secure messengers such as Signal,” a police official said.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY OH SO-YEONG [[email protected]]