Man Arrested for Running High-class Prostitution Service

Police arrested yesterday 19 men who allegedly ran and used a high-class prostitution service using both call girls and female college students.

The 37-year-old ringleader is known to have hired the top 10 percent of prostitutes and co-eds, with certain customers paying as much as five million won (4,022 U.S. dollars) for one round of sex.

Police also arrested 18 others for both selling and buying sex.

The alleged sex broker had been in the sex business since 2005, and also worked as a designated driver for prostitutes in Seoul’s affluent Gangnam area. Earlier this year, he decided to make quick money by hiring students from prestigious universities and prostitutes from famous Gangnam clubs.

He posted an ad for 20-something women on an adult Web site in January. He interviewed each applicant one-on-one and hired the most beautiful among them.

He then stole their identities to list them on an online site connecting men and women, and used ads saying “former model,” “aspiring celebrity,” or “appeared on a cable television program” through messages or chatting.

Men rushed to respond to the ads and the suspect allegedly received between one million (804 dollars) and five million won (4,022 dollars) per customer. He researched the professions and wealth of prospective male customers and offered a variety of services.

He had a driver and even sent a woman outside Seoul. In just seven months, he made an estimated 80 million won (64,000 dollars) and dodged police by changing his office every two to three months.

The suspect told police in questioning, “When I said I was an aspiring celebrity or model, we got a lot of calls. Some wanted to bring a woman on business trips to the provinces or wanted a woman to live together with.”

A police source said, “Men who bought sex were mostly high-income earners such as managers at mid to large-size companies or researchers. The majority of customers believed the women were only aspiring celebrities and didn’t know they were prostitutes.”

The scope of the investigation is expanding, with police looking at information on some 3,000 male and 200 female members that the suspect obtained online to get customers.

yunjung@donga.com