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A group of foreign workers who intentionally injured themselves to fraudulently claim industrial accident insurance and obtain visas have been apprehended, along with a Korean broker who orchestrated the scheme.

The Busan Metropolitan Police's criminal task force announced on Wednesday that it had arrested a broker in his 40s and 13 Uzbek nationals on charges of fraud and violating the Industrial Accident Compensation Insurance Act.

A screenshot shows a conversation between the broker and a foreign worker planning to commit fraud. Courtesy of Busan Metropolitan Police

The suspects allegedly fabricated injuries between August 2022 and July 2024, submitting false claims to the Korea Workers' Compensation and Welfare Service. They reported the injuries as work-related accidents to fraudulently receive approximately 500 million won ($380,000) in medical and leave allowances. Additionally, they secured industrial accident visas, allowing them to remain legally in Korea for over a year.

According to police, the broker, who previously worked in an administrative scrivener's office, recruited a foreign interpreter and approached undocumented migrants or those nearing the end of their visa periods at restaurants and construction sites. The broker reportedly promised them access to both industrial accident insurance payouts and G-1-1 special visas, enabling legal residency.

The foreign workers colluded with the broker, using knives, hammers, axes or rocks to intentionally amputate or severely injure their fingers. The broker fabricated documents from fake workplaces, claiming the workers were injured on the job, which the suspects then submitted to the Workers' Compensation and Welfare Service.

The scheme resulted in approximately fraudulent insurance payouts totaling 500 million won. The broker received fees of up to 15 million won per case, pocketing around 150 million won in total, while each foreign worker unlawfully received up to 31 million won. Investigations also revealed that some workers continued to work legally under their new visa status.

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.