Arrest warrant sought for ex-fiance of South Korean Olympic fencing medalist on fraud charges; fiance actually found to be a woman

SEOUL (The Korea Herald/ANN): Police sought an arrest warrant Thursday for the former fiance of Olympic fencing medalist Nam Hyun-hee on fraud charges after victims filed complaints following their sensational breakup over revelations that the fiance was actually a woman with a history of multiple convictions.

Nam, the silver medalist in women’s foil at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, broke up with her 15-year-younger fiance Jeon Cheong-jo last week, days after revelations that Jeon was legally a woman and had been convicted multiple times for fraud.

Jeon’s claims of being a third-generation scion of a conglomerate family were also debunked.

Jeon has since come under multiple fraud accusations.

On Thursday, the Songpa Police Station filed for the warrant against Jeon on charges that she swindled money from people she had met during her private lectures, using the pretense of investment. She was also accused of instigating people to take out loans for investment in her favor.

Police have so far confirmed 15 people were swindled out of a combined total of over 1.9 billion won (SUS$1.39 million). The number of victims could rise further as the investigation continues, police officials said.

The Seoul Eastern District Court is scheduled to hold a hearing as early as Friday to decide whether to grant the arrest warrant.

The former couple instantly captured public attention last month following a media interview in which Nam introduced Jeon as her boyfriend and a third-generation scion of a family-owned conglomerate, saying they plan to get married. In August, Nam said she had divorced her husband of 12 years, national cyclist Gong Hyo-suk.

But a flurry of skepticism and rumours had since emerged about Jeon’s background, with news outlets reporting that Jeon had been convicted of fraud several times, including swindling under the pretense of marriage. Jeon was also reported to be legally a woman and not affiliated with any conglomerate family or chaebol.

Nam has also filed a stalking complaint against Jeon for repeatedly pounding on the door of a home she was staying at after their breakup and ringing the doorbell.

Police detained Jeon on Tuesday at the home of a relative in Gimpo, west of Seoul and searched her apartment in a luxury residential building in southern Seoul and her mother’s home for evidence. – THE KOREA HERALD/ASIA NEWS NETWORK