Illegal employment broker arrested upon repatriation from Thailand

A 48-year-old Korean man who recruited at least 85 Thai women to illegally work in massage parlors in Korea has been nabbed.

The broker, identified only by his surname Yoo, has been detained for violation of the immigration law with a recommendation for indictment by the Incheon Airport immigration office, the Justice Ministry said Friday.

Yoo escaped to Thailand when police began investigating him on charges of fraud around December 2015. He had stayed in Thailand since, and is suspected of recruiting 85 Thai women and arranging for them to illegally enter Korea by falsely stating they were tourists.

Three accomplices, including Yoo’s son, met the women at Incheon airport, and brokered their illegal employment at massage parlors.

Yoo received between 500,000 and 1 million won per person from the Thai women for getting them the jobs.

Immigration authorities tracked down Yoo, found that he had opened a restaurant in Thailand, asked the Thai police for cooperation.

Yoo was repatriated to Korea last Saturday, and an arrest warrant was executed.

“It is the first case in which Korean immigration authorities worked with Thai police to nab an illegal employment broker. We will continue to work closely with the country to arrest and repatriate criminals on the wanted list,” an official at the Korean Immigration Service said.

By Kim So-hyun (sophie@heraldcorp.com)