BTS Jungkook hacking ringleader sentenced to 20 years in prison
A court in Seoul has sentenced a Chinese man to 20 years in prison for leading an international hacking operation that targeted BTS member Jungkook and other wealthy South Koreans.
The Seoul Central District Court found guilty on Thursday a Chinese indictee, identified by his surname Jeon, of fraud and violations of South Korea’s information network laws. The court linked the operation to more than 38bn won ($27.2mn) in stolen assets.
Judges said the group, led by Jeon, deliberately targeted wealthy people and described the crime as particularly serious because victims lost their assets without having done anything to expose themselves to fraud.
Investigators confirmed Jeon organised a cybercrime network operating across other countries, including Thailand. From August 2023, the group obtained personal information through attacks on websites and used it to open mobile phone accounts in victims’ names.
The criminals then used these unauthorised phone numbers to access financial and cryptocurrency accounts and transfer assets. Their victims included corporate executives, celebrities, influencers and cryptocurrency investors.
How the hacking operation targeted Jungkook
Jungkook became one of the group’s targets shortly after he began his mandatory military service in late 2023. The hackers attempted to use his identity to gain access to his securities account and transfer about 8.4bn won ($6mn) worth of HYBE shares.
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The attempted theft was stopped after HYBE and financial institutions detected suspicious activity and took action. As a result, Jungkook did not suffer the intended financial loss.
The case was part of a much wider operation. Authorities previously said the hackers successfully took about 39bn won from 16 people while attempts to steal another 25bn won from 10 victims were blocked by financial institutions.
Ringleader extradited from Thailand
Investigators tracked Jeon to Thailand with assistance from Interpol. Thai authorities detained him in May 2025 and subsequently extradited him to South Korea in August of that year.
A second suspected leader of the network was also arrested in Thailand and extradited to South Korea, where he remains on trial. Police said the wider investigation led to the arrests of 16 members of the organisation.
For Jungkook, the attempted theft became public in 2025 after reports revealed that an unauthorised account had been opened in his name and that his HYBE shares had been transferred. BigHit Music said it immediately froze the relevant transactions and restored the value of the assets, preventing substantial losses.
