Koreatown kye (matured fund) scam allegations are sending shockwaves through Los Angeles’ Korean American community, with victims claiming they lost millions of dollars through rotating savings groups and private loan arrangements.
Dozens of alleged victims are now considering police reports and legal action as they seek ways to recover their losses.
According to victims who spoke on May 19, the case centers on a woman identified only by the surname Kim, who worked as a manager at a dental office in LA’s Koreatown and allegedly organized multiple kye groups. A kye is a traditional Korean rotating savings arrangement in which members contribute money regularly and take turns receiving a lump-sum payout.
Lee, a hair salon owner who participated in one of Kim’s kye groups, said she was scheduled to receive $30,000 on May 27 but lost contact with Kim about a week earlier.
“The confirmed losses among members of the kye groups alone already exceed several million dollars,” Lee said.
According to tips received by The Korea Daily, Kim had worked at the dental office for more than 15 years. The Korea Daily confirmed that Kim was recently dismissed from the dental office and has since cut off contact and disappeared.
Another tipster, identified only by the surname Park, said many Koreans join kye groups based not only on trust in the organizer but also on referrals from acquaintances.
“Kim told many people that she was running kye groups and collected money from them,” Park said. “But some of those groups allegedly did not even exist.”
Park added that individual losses ranged from as little as $20,000 to as much as $200,000 per person.
The alleged 피해 was not limited to individual investors. People connected to the dental office also appear to have suffered losses.
According to tipsters, Kim allegedly borrowed money from about 20 acquaintances by claiming that the dental office was preparing to open a second location and that investors would receive interest payments. Losses connected to those alleged investment offers are estimated at more than $500,000.
Tipsters also claimed that Kim siphoned money during patient payment and estimate processes and allegedly withdrew funds by misusing the dental office owner’s check signature. The Korea Daily contacted the dental office on May 19 for comment, but the office declined to respond.
Victims pointed to the Korean community’s relationship-based financial culture as one reason the alleged scheme was able to continue.
“In immigrant communities, there is a culture of lending money to acquaintances when someone is in need,” one victim said. “Kim often bought meals for people, seemed financially comfortable and had good relationships with those around her, so people did not suspect her kye or investment proposals.”
Another alleged victim, identified only by the surname Song, said some people in financial difficulty borrow money from multiple acquaintances to temporarily cover cash flow problems, but Kim eventually stopped repaying people.
“I learned three years ago that she was gambling, so I stopped financial dealings with her after that,” Song said. “I understand that most of the money collected through the kye groups and alleged fraud was lost through gambling.”
Victims are now preparing possible civil lawsuits and other legal action. However, they worry that recovering their money could be difficult because many of the transactions were made verbally among acquaintances without written contracts.
“Even if I cannot get my money back, I want to make sure she is held legally responsible so this kind of fraud does not happen again,” one victim said.
