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Prostitution ring busted, 590 johns booked, including 17 public officials

Published: 24 Oct. 2025, 16:11

The interior of a brothel is seen in this undated photo provided by the Incheon Metropolitan Police Precinct. [INCHEON METROPOLITAN POLICE]

Police have arrested and charged hundreds of people involved in an organized prostitution ring operating across studio apartments in the greater Seoul area, the Incheon Metropolitan Police Precinct said Friday.

The agency’s crime prevention and order division said it arrested a man in his 30s who ran the prostitution ring on charges of violating the Act on the Punishment of Arrangement of Commercial Sex Acts. Three other managers and 67 sex workers were also booked without detention and referred to prosecutors.

Police also booked 590 men in their 20s to 60s for buying sex, including 17 public officials and employees of public institutions. Authorities have notified their respective agencies of their misconduct.

According to police, the ringleader and his associates allegedly rented more than 20 officetels — buildings used for residential and commercial purposes — across the greater Seoul area from October 2022 to February this year to arrange prostitution for clients.

They allegedly promoted the services on prostitution websites and sent details such as meeting times and locations via text messages, Korea's largest messenger app KakaoTalk, and Telegram.

Investigators said the suspects frequently changed offices and used burner phones to avoid detection. They allegedly kept systematic records of clients’ ages, jobs and appearances, and accepted payment only in cash.

Police estimate that the ringleader and his accomplices earned around 4 billion won ($2.8 million) in illicit profits, of which 1.2 billion won was frozen before the indictment.

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 KIM JI-HYE [[email protected]]