Anchor: Police have requested the pretrial detention of nearly all of the 64 South Koreans repatriated from Cambodia, who Phnom Penh says were involved in online scams organized by crime groups based in the Southeast Asian nation. As authorities widen their investigation, they are looking into the tragic death of a young Korean college student who was lured into working at one of the online Cambodian scam centers.
Rosyn Park has more.

Report: Fifty-eight of the 64 suspects who were flown back to Korea from Cambodia on Sunday will undergo a pretrial detention hearing. 

The National Police Agency(NPA) said on Monday that one individual, who was already subject to a detention order, was taken into custody immediately upon arrival.

Prosecutors declined to pursue detention for one individual who police said was involved in a so-called reading room scam, and four others have also been released.

Police said some of the suspects claimed they were imprisoned or assaulted by members of crime groups in Cambodia and that the details and facts of those cases are being confirmed.

Park Sung-joo, head of the National Office of Investigation, said on Friday that authorities were thoroughly examining the extent of the Korean suspects’ involvement in the online scam rings, noting that they may be both victims and criminals.

The NPA said it plans to widen its crackdown on criminal groups running online fraud schemes overseas, including the structure of these organizations and their methods of recruiting and getting Koreans into other countries.

Amid growing concern and public outcry in South Korea regarding the situation, police and national forensic investigators traveled to Phnom Penh and conducted a joint autopsy alongside Cambodian authorities on the remains of a college student, surnamed Park, who died in Cambodia over the summer.

The 22-year-old Park left for Cambodia on July 17 after telling his family he would attend an exhibition, but was found dead in a car three weeks later in Kampot Province.

Officials believe he was lured in by an online scam group, detained and tortured to death.

The NPA said it would consult with Cambodia regarding the repatriation of Park’s remains as soon as possible.
Rosyn Park, KBS World Radio News.