Man who married 2 women faces arrest on fraud charges

Police in Seoul`s Yangcheon district on Tuesday applied for an arrest warrant on fraud charges for a man who is known to have married two women, one in Seoul and the other in Iksan, North Jeolla Province.

Hwang, the woman in Seoul, married the suspect, Kim, who said he worked for a major bank. She thought she had a happy marriage. She was expecting the birth of their first child in March. But her life came crashing down, after a visit to her home on Feb. 16 by a woman who was the real wife of her husband. According to the woman, she has a four-year-old child with him. The would-be bigamist was found to have families in both Seoul and Iksan, as well as lacking a job.

Even more shocking was that the people whom Kim said were his parents and siblings at the wedding were imposters whom he hired from a marriage guest assistance company. He then took 64.5 million won (58,850 U.S. dollars) from her saying he needed to pay an interim deposit for the apartment he bought for them and a car, and sent 1.2 million won (1,095 dollars) as monthly living expenses to his other home.

Hwang discovered the truth when her husband`s other wife came to see her husband, who said he had gotten a job in Seoul. Hwang gave birth after just nine months and ultimately sued her husband.

jaj@donga.com