Korean news giant Chosun Ilbo accused of supporting $3 billion KOK crypto scam

Victims of the KOK crypto scam have called out South Korea’s largest daily newspaper for supporting the fraud scheme that caused at least $2.97 billion in losses.

According to the Ajlu press report, a coalition of victims accused Chosun IIbo subsidiaries IT Chosun and Digital Chosun Ilbo of deliberately promoting the fake KOK token scheme to the public.

The coalition claims that these media outlets provided extensive coverage that gave legitimacy to the token, including reporting on the launch of KOK’s main transaction server and giving the company a large reward for consumer satisfaction.

Coalition leader Jin Eun-ja alleges that program operators used these approvals to mislead investors into trusting the project when concerns about the project were raised, ultimately contributing to their financial losses.

Meanwhile, Lawyer Lee Min-suk, representing the coalition, pointed out the questionable timing of Chosun Ilbo’s coverage and rewards, suggesting that it played a key role in giving the scheme an air of credibility and ultimately drawing more unsuspecting investors into the scam.

He called for a special investigation to determine whether the Chosun Ilbo’s actions helped key figures in the fraud avoid legal problems early, especially in light of the Ulsan District Prosecutor’s Office’s investigation, which has yet to produce meaningful results.

Eun-ja also expressed disappointment that a key supporter of KOK, identified only as Mr. Han, was released in the United States despite being a red notice fugitive. As of last update, Han was arrested in the US earlier this year and is awaiting extradition to South Korea.

Regulators step in

Democratic Party lawmakers Yang Moon-suk and Min Hyung-bae raised the issue during the National Assembly audit in Seoul on October 7, calling for a more comprehensive investigation into the entire POPs fiasco.

Lawmakers claim that the scheme operated as a multi-level marketing scheme that promised to manage to attract 1.86 million domestic and international investors, resulting in losses of approximately 4 trillion won ($29.7 billion).

At its peak, the KOK token rose as high as $6.83 in February 2022, but its value has since dropped dramatically to $0.0003129 at the time of writing, according to CoinGecko data. However, the token remains live on four centralized exchanges: ByBit, Gate.io, Indodax and HTX, with the highest 24-hour trading volume of $73,114 recorded on ByBit.

However, the operators seemed to have given up on the project’s X account with the last post in June 2023.

Meanwhile, South Korean regulators are also awaiting the extradition of Do Kwon, the controversial founder of Terraform Labs. Kwon faces charges in South Korea and the United States in connection with an alleged $40 billion cryptocurrency scam involving TerraUSD.