A woman in her 50s has reportedly fallen victim to an online romance scam involving a fraudster pretending to be Squid Game actor Lee Jung Jae, losing nearly ₩500 million KRW (about Rs. 98.96 million) in the process.
According to the report, the victim, identified only as Ms. A, came into contact with the scammer through social media. The impersonator claimed to be the famous actor and said he wanted to “connect with fans.” To make the deception more convincing, he shared AI-generated selfies supposedly taken at airports, along with a forged ID card, and claimed he was busy filming Squid Game 3.
Over time, the fraudster developed a romantic connection with Ms. A, affectionately calling her “honey” and “darling.” Later, he introduced another individual posing as a business executive, who promised Ms. A a private meeting with Lee Jung Jae in exchange for ₩6 million KRW.
Over a period of six months, the two con artists continued their elaborate ruse, inventing stories and extracting payments from Ms. A until she had sent them a total of ₩500 million KRW.
Authorities have warned the public to be cautious of online impersonation and romance scams, particularly those using AI-generated photos and fake celebrity accounts to target victims.