Gyeonggi Province Special Investigation Police Crack Down on Illegal 'Call Jumping' Taxi Services on Roads

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Park No-hun] Thirty-two people, including business operators and associates who earned approximately 370 million won in unjust gains through illegal paid passenger transport using luxury imported vehicles such as personal cars and rental cars—commonly known as "call jumping"—and unlicensed car rental operators, were caught in the investigation net of the Gyeonggi Province Special Investigation Police.

Kim Young-soo, Head of the Gyeonggi Province Fair Trade Special Investigation Police, held a press conference at the Gyeonggi Provincial Government building on the 24th and announced, "From October last year, we conducted targeted investigations into illegal rental car operations such as call jumping centered in Gwangju, Yeoju, and Ansan. As a result, we identified 32 people including brokers and drivers engaged in illegal paid transport operations and unlicensed car rental operators, of which 22 have been referred to the prosecution."

The provincial Special Investigation Police charged 32 people including representatives and drivers of chauffeur service companies engaged in illegal activities such as ▲arranging and operating illegal call taxis ▲illegal operation of auto rental businesses (rental cars) with violations of the Passenger Vehicle Transport Business Act.

Additionally, they confirmed that these individuals committed serious crimes carrying a maximum sentence of up to two years imprisonment or fines not exceeding 20 million won.

Looking at specific cases, Mr. A, without obtaining a taxi license, established an office under the alias "C Chauffeur Service" in City B to evade police crackdowns. Mr. A recruited 14 illegal taxi drivers through advertising via promotional calendars, business cards, and Facebook, and pocketed 12.8 million won in unjust gains over two years as compensation for arranging illegal taxi operations.

Mr. D established an unregistered shell company and engaged in illegal taxi operations for passengers requesting call taxi services, earning 2 million won from December 2019 to November last year. Mr. E opened a specific phone number and advertised paid transport operations on internet Facebook pages, receiving call taxi requests from passengers, and embezzled 6 million won in unjust gains from January 2019 to November last year through such methods.

Furthermore, Mr. F attracted customers using large sedan vehicles from October last year to February this year, demanded fares up to three times the standard rate for long distances without rate standards, and earned 1.8 million won in illegal profits from call taxi operations.

Mr. G received 150 million won and illegally provided 23 rental cars he owned to Mr. H, who was not registered for auto rental business operations. Mr. H operated a rental car business at his own auto multi-shop using the 23 vehicles and earned 18 million won in unjust gains.

Mr. I was operating a registered auto rental business in City J when, in order to expand the business, he established business offices and garages in City K from January 2019 to October of that year without filing a business plan change report with the relevant authorities. Using a method of renting out 46 vehicles 253 times while evading crackdowns, he earned a total of 63 million won in illegal profits.

As a result of the investigation, the criminal records of the 32 suspects were confirmed to include a maximum of 13 prior convictions, 5 fraud cases, and 2 rape cases. Additionally, to increase their paid transport performance, they engaged in illegal highway conduct such as speeding, indicating that urgent measures are needed to protect passengers from exposure to secondary crime risks.

Furthermore, 13 of the 32 suspects have a history of being punished for similar crimes (violations of the Passenger Vehicle Transport Business Act), and it has been identified that many cases continue to commit livelihood-related crimes while evading crackdowns even after being punished.

Director Kim Young-soo stated, "To prevent livelihood-related crimes, for suspects who are disabled or in need of emergency welfare, we will coordinate with vulnerable population support departments to review whether they qualify for customized welfare support. To ensure citizen safety and establish a safe transportation order, we will expand investigations into illegal paid transport throughout the province and make efforts to eliminate unfair practices."