SEOUL, January 8 (AJP) - A key suspect in the brutal torture and killing of a South Korean college student in Cambodia last summer has been nabbed in Thailand, government authorities here said on Thursday.
The Justice Ministry said a 42-year-old Chinese, the alleged mastermind of a Cambodia-based scam ring, was arrested in Pattaya, Thailand, the previous day, following a joint investigation with the National Police Agency and the National Intelligence Service.
Between May and July last year, the crime ring allegedly lured South Koreans to Cambodia with offers of high-paying part-time work and then threatened them with guns and other weapons to force them to reveal bank account details including passwords and other sensitive personal information.
Several months into the investigation of a case involving a South Korean college student, who traveled to the Southeast Asian country after being lured by an online employment scam in August and was later found to have been tortured to death, the ministry learned in November that the suspect had entered Thailand and promptly requested his arrest from Thai authorities.
But the ministry said South Korea should seek a formal extradition and obtain approval from a Thai court to bring him back, as he is a Chinese national.
The ministry vowed it will continue working hard to track down and arrest all suspects in collaboration with domestic and foreign authorities.
The Justice Ministry said a 42-year-old Chinese, the alleged mastermind of a Cambodia-based scam ring, was arrested in Pattaya, Thailand, the previous day, following a joint investigation with the National Police Agency and the National Intelligence Service.
Between May and July last year, the crime ring allegedly lured South Koreans to Cambodia with offers of high-paying part-time work and then threatened them with guns and other weapons to force them to reveal bank account details including passwords and other sensitive personal information.
Several months into the investigation of a case involving a South Korean college student, who traveled to the Southeast Asian country after being lured by an online employment scam in August and was later found to have been tortured to death, the ministry learned in November that the suspect had entered Thailand and promptly requested his arrest from Thai authorities.
But the ministry said South Korea should seek a formal extradition and obtain approval from a Thai court to bring him back, as he is a Chinese national.
The ministry vowed it will continue working hard to track down and arrest all suspects in collaboration with domestic and foreign authorities.
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