Daijeon Metropolitan Police Bureau has recently filed a case against a sophisticated insurance fraud ring that orchestrated staged traffic accidents to claim insurance on high-value imported vehicles. According to police reports, eight individuals, including the alleged ringleader, have been sent to the prosecution without being detained. They face charges under the Special Act on Insurance Fraud Prevention.
Police investigations revealed that between September 2019 and May 2024, the group executed five meticulously planned accidents. These incidents inflicted financial losses on three insurance companies, totalling 30 billion won (approximately USD 204,400).
The ringleader is a former employee of an insurance company who also operated a car repair workshop, which doubled as a pseudo insurance agency. He would purchase vehicles declared as total losses at auctions following staged accidents, carry out partial external repairs, and then have his accomplices deliberately crash these cars on the road to file insurance claims.
The scheme was not confined to Daijeon alone; the gang carried out operations across multiple regions, including South Chungcheong and Gyeonggi provinces. Police stated that the illicit gains were primarily used to fund the suspects’ lifestyles. None of the individuals involved had prior convictions for traffic accident-related insurance fraud.
The vehicles involved in the scheme were predominantly luxury imports such as BMW, Maserati, Tesla, and also included recently popular camper vans.
One particularly notable accident occurred in September 2024, when a BMW collided with a camper van. Both vehicles were extensively damaged, and the occupants sustained serious injuries, resulting in hospitalisation. The insurance claim for this single incident alone was 120 million won.
A summary of key details is provided in the table below:
| Category | Details |
|---|---|
| Number of suspects | 8 |
| Ringleader | Former insurance company employee |
| Number of staged accidents | 5 (2019–2024) |
| Affected insurance companies | 3 |
| Total insurance claims | 30 billion won (~USD 204,400) |
| Vehicles involved | BMW, Maserati, Tesla, Camper van |
| Notable incident | Sep 2024: BMW & camper van collision; 120 million won claim; serious injuries |
A spokesperson for Daijeon Police commented, “This case represents a textbook example of premeditated traffic accident fraud orchestrated by a former insurance company employee. We are committed to rigorously enforcing the law to protect ordinary citizens from the financial burden of insurance fraud.”
The investigation began after a suspicious report was filed by an insurance company. All suspects have been formally charged and forwarded to the prosecution, marking a decisive step in tackling sophisticated insurance-related crimes.