South Korea hunts down leader of new ‘Nth Room’ as sex crimes soar despite digital reforms

Suspect ‘L’ is believed to have coerced minors to perform sexual acts on camera and profited from the distribution and sale of the material on Telegram

Despite a law imposed last year to combat digital sex crimes, they continue to proliferate ‘faster and more easily than ever’, according to activists

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In South Korea a criminal mastermind is being traced – along with possible accomplices and viewers of illegal content – for coercing minors to perform sexually degrading acts on camera. Photo: Shutterstock/File

Published: 11:00am, 25 Sep 2022

The dangers of the internet, and the seedy criminal element of the online world, are once again making news in South Korea, following what is being called the “second Nth Room case”.

The scandal involves a criminal mastermind given the alias “L”, who police are tracking down – along with possible accomplices and viewers of illegal content – for coercing minors to perform sexually degrading acts on camera and profiting from their distribution and sale to users through the private messaging app Telegram.

Two years ago, Cho Ju-bin became the first sex offender to have his identity revealed while in police custody, after his child sex abuse and prostitution crimes caused a national outcry.

South Korean police typically hide the face and information of criminals, but nearly 2.7 million people signed a petition demanding to see the 24-year-old’s face.

Cho Ju-bin, leader of South Korea’s online sexual blackmail ring called ‘Nth room’, walks out of a police station in Seoul, South Korea on March 25, 2020. Photo: Reuters/Pool/File

In the original Nth Room case, at least 103 people, including 26 underage girls, were blackmailed into performing gruesome sex acts while their photos were shared and sold to more than 60,000 users.