**Telegram Criminal Group ‘Vigilante’ Operation**
– Number of Victims Three Times Greater than the ‘Nth Room’ Case
– 159 Minor Victims
The leader of a cyber sexual violence criminal group called ‘Vigilante,’ which used Telegram to produce and distribute sexual exploitation material, was sent to prosecution on the morning of the 24th in Seoul. This group operated a so-called ‘Acquaintance Abuse Room’ on Telegram, where illegal sexual exploitation material was created and distributed.
The leader, who is accused of directing acts of sexual violence among members, attempted to block the police decision to disclose his identity, but the court rejected his request. According to the legal community on the 7th, the administrative division of the Seoul Administrative Court dismissed the application for suspension of identity disclosure filed by a 33-year-old man surnamed Kim, who referred to himself as a ‘pastor’ and led the criminal group against the Seoul Commissioner of Police.
As a result, the police decided to disclose Kim’s personal information. The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency’s Cyber Crime Investigation Team announced that from the morning of the 8th until March 10th, they would reveal the suspect’s face, name, and age on the agency’s website. The decision followed a public information disclosure committee meeting considering the cruelty and seriousness of the crimes involved.
Kim, who ran the ‘Vigilante’ cyber sexual violence group from May 2020 to January this year, is accused of creating and distributing sexual exploitation materials, and engaging in sexual assault through threats and psychological domination. Police have identified a total of 234 victims in this case, among whom 159 are minors. There are 64 adult victims, with the remaining 11 individuals’ identities yet to be confirmed.
The scale of this incident is much more extensive compared to the previous ‘Nth Room’ case, which had a total of 73 victims, including 16 minors.