'Brave Detectives 4' revealed the arrest of Kim Nok-wan, who is suspected of exploiting 234 men and women, including minors, while operating as the leader 'Pastor' of a cyber sexual violence crime group called 'Self-Defense Group' on Telegram.
In the 44th episode of T-Cast E Channel's 'Brave Detectives 4', which aired on the 25th, Seoul Cyber Investigation Team's Deputy Chief Jo Seung-no appeared to present the investigation log he personally resolved.
The case began with a report from a woman stating that a photo of her naked body had been digitally altered and spread online, and that a man was continuously calling her. The man who called the reporter demanded personal information about her ex-boyfriend, who was suspected of spreading the photo, and threatened her when she refused.
The suspect, who identified himself as part of the 'Self-Defense Group', approached the victim claiming he would punish those who distribute deepfake and illegal videos. The Cyber Investigation Team tracked the source of the threatening calls and arrested two high school students, but they did not know each other.
Both suspects demanded the personal information of the reporter's ex-boyfriend and referred to themselves as 'evangelists' or 'prospective evangelists', stating they followed the 'Pastor's' orders. However, they did not know the Pastor's name or face. They were also perpetrators who had uploaded deepfake videos and were under the Pastor's control. The Pastor organized a cyber sexual crime group through orders, threats, and punishments.
The Cyber Investigation Team confirmed 60 reports of victims in the first round. These victims were pure victims with no history of being perpetrators, and most were minor female students. The perpetrators lured victims into Telegram rooms by claiming that deepfake photos and personal information had been distributed, targeting users of secret accounts on social media who had posted parts of their bodies.
Detective Jo Seung-no emphasized that if someone on Telegram requests to 'unhide phone number', one should never comply. He warned that if this setting is disabled, the other party can learn the phone number, which could lead to identifying the victim's main social media account, name, school, and other personal information, urging special caution to prevent victimization.
The self-proclaimed Pastor controlled victims by enforcing morning and evening greetings, daily reports, and even permission to sleep through a Telegram announcement room. If a report was missed, he imposed sadistic punishments such as videos of naked self-reflections, and manipulated their psychology through a point system and graduation system. The revelation that sexual intercourse was also forced sparked outrage.
The investigation team continued their investigation by meticulously analyzing the Pastor's conversations, and nine months after the incident was reported, in August 2024, Pavel Durov, the founder of Telegram, was arrested in France on charges of aiding and abetting crime. Subsequently, the investigation team applied pressure by mobilizing various departments, and Telegram revised its terms to offer to provide information on lawbreakers.
The investigation team took over the chat rooms and channels, secured the operator's account, and after tracking the IP, identified 33-year-old Kim Nok-wan. He was an office worker living with his parents and working at a small business. Based on the lessons learned from the Jo Joo-bin case, the detectives arrested him in an elevator while he was using his smartphone.
On his laptop, 1,546 sexual exploitation materials and deepfake videos, as well as videos of sexual assault victims, were discovered. However, Kim Nok-wan's arrest in January of this year received relatively low social attention due to overlapping political issues such as martial law and impeachment.
The number of victims who were threatened and sexually exploited by Kim Nok-wan is 234, and cases are still being reported. He was originally a spectator in a room that exposed the identities of sex offenders, but since 2020, he began to self-identify as part of the 'Self-Defense Group' and expanded his targets, subsequently committing heinous acts against female victims.
During the investigation, Kim Nok-wan stated that he derived pleasure from dominating and controlling young women. All 14 members of the organization, including Kim Nok-wan, and 87 others who participated in the criminal acts were arrested. Currently, the first trial is underway, and Kim Nok-wan faces 19 charges, including the production of child and adolescent sexual exploitation materials, rape, and organizing a criminal organization.
Meanwhile, 'Brave Detectives 4' airs every Friday at 9:50 PM and is also available on major OTT platforms such as Netflix, Tving, and Wavve.
[Kim Mi-ji, Star Today Reporter]
