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SNU grads arrested for fake pornography of women on campus

Published: 21 May. 2024, 13:33 Updated: 22 May. 2024, 16:12

LEE SOO-JUNG
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Protesters hold signs in 2020 demanding heavy punishment for Cho Ju-bin, who is now imprisoned on various charges of child sex abuse and the distribution and sale of illegal pornographic material in connection to the Nth Room scandal. [NEWS1]

Two graduates of the Seoul National University (SNU) were arrested on charges of creating and distributing sexually explicit content involving dozens of younger female students and alums, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency said Tuesday.

Five suspects have been apprehended, including a 40-year-old SNU graduate surnamed Park who allegedly created 1,852 sexually exploitive pieces of content using the faces of 48 female victims. Park is accused of distributing the fake sexual content on Telegram, an encrypted messenger service.

Having spent over a decade at the school, Park was acquainted with the victims.

Of 61 confirmed victims, 12 were found to be either graduates or active students of SNU.

Another accomplice who also graduated from SNU, a 31-year-old man surnamed Kang, allegedly produced nearly 100 deepfake sexual videos. He is also believed to have used Telegram to distribute the illegally fabricated content.

According to the police, Park and Kang edited graduation photos or social media profile pictures of younger students to make pornographic materials between July 2021 and April this year.

The two developed a psychological bond over their crime, praising each other as " Photoshop experts.”

The crime was uncovered by Won Eun-ji, half of the female duo dubbed Team Flame that investigated and exposed Nth Room, the notorious Telegram chatroom that provided paid access to child pornography and other sexually exploitive content, in 2020.

In the recent case, Won entered the Telegram chatroom and built rapport with Park for over two years by disguising herself as a man.

On April 3, she lured Park to an offline venue in Gwanak District, southern Seoul, where he was caught by police officers on standby.

Park and Kang were referred to the prosecution and detained on April 11 and last Thursday, respectively.

According to a report in the JoongAng Ilbo on Tuesday, SNU will form a dedicated team to protect the victims and prepare measures to deter the recurrence of similar types of crime.

BY JANG SEO-YUN, PARK JONG-SUH, LEE SOO-JUNG [[email protected]]