A woman in her 30s says she lost 35 million won (approximately $25,000) to a scammer who allegedly posed as actor Lee Dong Wook and convinced her they were in a romantic relationship.
The victim, identified only as “A,” shared her story on the September 16th episode of SBS’s News Hunters. A, who works as a background actor, said she communicated with someone claiming to be Lee for eight months and came to believe their relationship was serious.
“He said things that sounded like he had feelings for me,” she recalled. “We even talked about visiting my parents together and having our families meet. That’s how we became official. We talked like this for almost a year. I thought he had chosen me as someone he wanted to marry.”
According to A, she ultimately sent the impersonator 35 million won after even breaking into her savings and using money she needed for living expenses.
The alleged scam reportedly centered on an expensive package the impersonator claimed to have sent while filming overseas. He told A that the package contained gifts worth 700 million won but had been held up at customs, requiring her to repeatedly pay fees for customs clearance documents.
The requests eventually totaled 35 million won. A said the impersonator told her, “I’m a celebrity, so this can’t become a big issue. Don’t send the money to my agency’s account. Wire it to the one I give you.” The names attached to the bank accounts reportedly differed each time.
Lee Dong Wook’s agency responded by warning fans that its artists never request money or personal information through private messages or social media.
“Our artists never ask for valuables, money or personal information through private messaging services or social media accounts,” the agency said. “Similar cases have recently been occurring elsewhere as well, so we urge everyone to exercise particular caution.”
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