Moon Hayoung, 40, a South Korean fugitive, was arrested by the Philippine Bureau of Immigration (BI) on February 26 in Barangay Palamis, Alaminos City, Pangasinan. He is accused of masterminding a $840,000 voice phishing scam in South Korea and evading authorities by posing as a Filipino citizen.
BI officials said Moon operated the scheme starting January 2017, with members posing as representatives of a major Korean bank to defraud victims. Moon was identified as the ringleader, funding the operation, organizing the syndicate, and setting up facilities used for the scam.
Authorities discovered that Moon was carrying a fraudulent Philippine passport under the name Jonathan Martinez Park and reportedly owned several resort properties in Batangas and Pangasinan.
Moon is the subject of an Interpol Red Notice issued following an arrest warrant from the Suwon District Court in South Korea for fraud under Article 347(1) of Korea’s Criminal Act.
BI Commissioner Joel Anthony Viado warned that foreigners using false identities to evade arrest would face legal consequences. Moon will remain detained at the BI warden facility pending deportation proceedings.
