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Businesses targeted by fraudsters posing as political aides to make lavish restaurant reservations

Published: 19 May. 2025, 12:48 Updated: 21 May. 2025, 14:15

Democratic Party presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung, second from right, speaks with workers on non-standard contracts at a restaurant in Jongno District, central Seoul, on May 1. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

Small business owners across Korea have become victims of a growing scam as the presidential election approaches: fraudsters posing as political aides to place expensive fake reservations, only to vanish without paying.

Park, a shop owner in their 60s who runs a tuna hoe (raw fish) restaurant in Jeungpyeong County, North Chungcheong, still seethes when talking about the scam that cost their business time, money and peace of mind. What Park thought was a high-profile reservation turned out to be a sham.

On May 12, the official start of the presidential election campaign, a man called Park’s restaurant around 6:07 p.m., claiming to be Park Min-jae, a legislative aide to Rep. Lim Ho-seon of the Democratic Party (DP). He reserved an eight-person platter of tuna hoe and requested the meal be ready by 7 p.m. on May 14, with a budget cap of 1 million won ($715).

DP Rep. Lim, a two-term lawmaker representing Jeungpyeong, Jincheon and Eumseong, was named explicitly to give the reservation an air of legitimacy.

The caller asked Park to keep the visit discreet “given the political climate,” requested a menu via text and even asked if corkage would be allowed. On the day of the reservation, he added two more people to the guest list.

“He had a deep, composed voice and asked me to make it special,” said Park. “I truly believed he worked for the assemblyman.”

A man introducing himself as Park Min-jae, a legislative aide to Rep. Lim Ho-seon of the Democratic Party, asks to see the menu at a restaurant in Jeungpyeong County, North Chungcheong, in this screen capture of a text message provided to the JoongAng Ilbo. The man reserved a spot at the restaurant but never showed up. [JOONGANG ILBO]

But four hours before the scheduled dinner, Park received a text saying Lim’s schedule had changed and the dinner was canceled. When Park contacted acquaintances to verify the aide’s identity, it was revealed that there was no one named Park Min-jae in Lim’s office.

Though Park managed to sell the thawed tuna to other customers, the store still lost around 150,000 won in special appetizer costs.

“I realized it was a total no-show scam,” Park said.

Pre-election scams sweep across the country

As the presidential election approaches, similar scams are spreading nationwide. In many cases, individuals impersonated political aides to deceive small businesses, leaving behind a trail of no-show reservations and unpaid bills.

On Tuesday, a scammer claiming to work for DP Rep. Moon Jin-seok’s office made dinner reservations at six restaurants in Cheonan, South Chungcheong.

The fraudster told them the 20-people gathering would include the lawmaker and a minister, requesting special wines worth 1.04 million won and recommending a specific wine vendor.

A scammer claiming to work for Democratic Party Rep. Moon Jin-seok’s office made dinner reservations at restaurants in Cheonan, South Chungcheong. The fraudster asks a store owner if corkage is allowed in this screen capture of a text message provided to the JoongAng Ilbo. [JOONGANG ILBO]

On Wednesday, the day of the reservation, the caller never showed up. At least one restaurant wired the wine payment in advance and is now facing a 1 million won loss. The affected business owners have since reported the incident to the police.

That same day, in Daejeon, someone impersonating a staffer from DP presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung’s campaign placed an order for 300,000 name cards worth 200,000 won, then asked the printer to wire funds.

The party later issued a statement condemning the fraud, calling it “a scheme to damage candidate Lee’s image” and vowing to take strong legal action.

A man claiming to work for Democratic Party presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung's camp asked a motel in Gimhae, South Gyeongsang to organize accommodation and food for 30 staff members. [JOONGANG ILBO]

Motels also targeted

The scam wasn’t limited to restaurants or print shops.

On Wednesday, a man walked into a motel in Gimhae, South Gyeongsang, introducing himself as a staff member for Lee Jae-myung's camp with a business card that read “Kang Jin-wook, PR director of the Party Leader Support Camp.”

He claimed to be organizing accommodation for 30 campaign staff members and asked the motel to prepare 30 lunchboxes as well.

The motel owner, suspicious due to prior media reports, called the DP’s provincial office to verify. The booking turned out to be a lie.

In Ulsan, a similar scam unfolded. A man phoned a local lodging business, introducing himself as the public relations head for the People Power Party, and asked to reserve rooms for 30 people from Wednesday to Saturday.

When the motel requested a deposit of 200,000 to 300,000 won, the man declined, saying he would pay with a party-issued card upon arrival. He sent over a business card and finalized the reservation but never appeared.

Scams leave police with few leads

The perpetrators often use burner phones and only communicate through calls or text messages, making them difficult to trace. The businesses targeted are usually asked to either prepare services in advance or transfer money to fake vendors. In many cases, the bank accounts used are under borrowed names.

Police say the best defense is vigilance.

“If the order goes beyond what’s typical, always ask for payment upfront,” a police official said. “And if someone wants you to wire money for them to buy something, it’s a scam — no exceptions.”

Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.
BY CHOI JONG-KWON, WE SUNG-WOOK [[email protected]]