International students held for prostitution

International students enrolled in several well-known universities were found to be involved in prostitution following a police crackdown, Yongsan Police said yesterday.

The six female students, from China, Mongolia and Uzbekistan, and the 59-year-old proprietor of a Korean “karaoke” establishment, where liquor and women are available, were detained and are under investigation.

Police said the students were lured by the proprietor into prostitution with promises of high wages and the opportunity to buy Korean cosmetics at a discount.

The proprietor had posted on online forums frequented by foreign exchange students to entice women to his business.

“If your Korean language skill is around level 4, you will be able to work at a bar as a server at a rate of 15,000 won ($13) an hour, and you will also be able to buy luxury-brand cosmetics cheaply,” one posting read.

While the posts advertised the establishment as a bar, the proprietor would redirect them to his karaoke, urging them that along with entertaining customers in private rooms, they could “make a lot of money” by entering prostitution, police said.

The students earned 60,000 won for working two hours in private rooms at the establishment, and 150,000 won per customer if they engaged in sexual acts, the investigation revealed. They also sold the discounted Korean cosmetics they bought to their friends in China.

Police said the arrested students attended various schools, including a prestigious private university and a well-known women’s university.

The students were in the country on student, tourist and family visas, and they were currently enrolled or taking time off as architecture, finance, international commerce and Korean language and literature majors.

Police added that they were examining CCTV footage from a motel in Yongsan and reviewing credit card transactions to find the identities of customers who engaged in prostitution for investigation.

“We are considering seeking an arrest warrant for the proprietor, who lured the foreign exchange students into prostitution,” a Yongsan Police official said.

“Since there is a high chance of foreign students studying in Korea to fall into prostitution to obtain living and entertainment expenses, there needs to be an active crackdown on the widespread damages caused by the Internet.”

By Sarah Kim [sarahkim@joongang.co.kr]

한글 관련 기사 [일간스포츠]

명문 사립대 외국인 유학생 성매매 검거

고가의 화장품을 싸게 살 수 있다는 유혹에 넘어가 성매매를 한 외국인 유학생 6명이 잡혔다.

서울 용산경찰서는 18일 외국인 유학생에게 성매매를 알선한 혐의로 유흥주점 업주 권모(58)씨에 대해 구속영장을 신청하고, 성매매를 한 외국인 유학생을 형사처벌할 계획이라고 밝혔다.

경찰에 따르면 용산구 한강로에서 유흥주점을 운영하는 권씨는 지난 4월 외국인 유학생들이 즐겨 찾는 인터넷 사이트에 '한국어능력 4급 정도면 호프집 서빙으로 시간당 1만5000원을 벌 수 있고, 고가의 한국산 화장품을 싸게 살 수 있다'는 글을 올렸다. 또 권씨는 이들에게 "유흥주점 접대와 성매매를 하면 더 많은 돈을 벌 수 있다"고 유학생들을 유혹한 것으로 조사됐다. 권씨의 제안을 받아들인 일부 학생들은 한 달에 4~5번씩 주점에 나가 월 100만원의 수입을 올렸다.

광고글을 보고 업소를 찾아온 외국인은 중국·몽골·우즈베키스탄 출신으로 밝혀졌다. 해당 학생들은 모두 20대 초반으로 서울 소재 유명 대학에 재학 중인 것으로 확인됐다. 경찰 관계자는 "학생들이 모두 혐의를 인정하고 있다"고 말했다. 경찰은 학생들의 증언을 토대로 성매매 알선에 관여한 이들을 파악하고 있다.

폐쇄회로(CC)TV분석을 통해 성매수 남성 30여 명의 신원파악을 마쳤다. 경찰은 이들의 신용카드 사용 내역 등을 파악하는 대로 소환 조사에 들어갈 계획이다.