The prosecution has detected some 130 Korean-Chinese who falsified their identities and reentered Korea after being deported for having committed crimes or overstaying their visas.

It detained and indicted 11 of them while indicting 15 others without detention, officials at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office said Sunday. The office has put another four on the wanted list.

The rest were released after investigation for reasons that the investigators did not specify.

Prosecutors have increased efforts since April to find foreign nationals with criminal records who have entered the country illegally.

Their probe, with a particular focus on Korean-Chinese, came amid growing public anxiety about crimes by foreigners, they said. The most notable recent case was a murder in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, by Korean-Chinese Wu Yuanchuan in April.

He was convicted of murdering a 28-year-old woman and dismembering her body. A district court sentenced him to death earlier this month.

Investigators used their facial recognition system to analyze photos recorded on entry to the country against the prosecution’s mug shot database, they said.

"As China has a large population, its resident registration has not been thoroughly computerized. So, through brokers, (Korean-Chinese) were able to modify their personal records and obtain new passports,” a prosecution official told media.

By Song Sang-ho
(sshluck@heraldcorp.com)


<관련 한글 기사>

신분 세탁 조선족 130명, 안면인식기로 딱 걸려

검찰이 24일 국내에서 형사처벌 받거나 불법체류로 적발돼 강제 퇴거된 뒤 신분을 세탁해 재입국한 조선족 중국인 130명을 적발했다고 밝혔다.

서울중앙지검 외사부는 이날 11명을 구속하고, 15명을 불구속 입건, 4명은 지명수배했다고 밝혔다. 그 외 나머지는 풀어주었지만 풀어준 사유를 밝히지는 않았다.

이번 수사는 오원춘 사건과 같은 외국인 강력범죄가 급증해 진행된 것으로 알려졌다.

검찰은 지난 4월부터 공항과 항만의 안면인식시스템 360여 대를 활용해 신분세탁한 조선족을 적발했다. 

검찰 관계자는 “중국 호구부(주민등록)는 인구가 많고 전산화가 제대로 돼 있지 않아 브로커를 통해 쉽게 새로운 인적 사항으로 여권을 받을 수 있다”고 밝혔다. 

(코리아헤럴드 송상호 기자)