A South Korean court has upheld a deportation order against a Libyan national convicted of operating an illegal cryptocurrency-based money transfer scheme worth 94 billion won ($62 million), according to Korea Herald newspaper.
The ruling, issued by the Daejeon District Court, rejected an administrative lawsuit filed by the Libyan man against immigration authorities after they ordered him to leave the country following his conviction on financial crime charges.
According to legal sources cited by the Korea Herald, the court dismissed the man’s argument that he should be allowed to remain in South Korea because his business activities had contributed to the local economy and because his wife and seven children reside in the country. The Libyan national first arrived in South Korea in 2009.
“The state has broad authority to deport foreign nationals whose continued stay is deemed undesirable,” the court said in its decision.
The case centres on an illegal foreign exchange operation that used cryptocurrency to move funds between countries outside approved financial channels. Prosecutors said the Libyan national and several accomplices received cryptocurrency purchased with foreign currency overseas, converted it into South Korean won and then transferred the proceeds to designated recipients inside South Korea.
Between November 2021 and October 2022, the group allegedly carried out 2,515 transactions with a combined value of 94 billion won. Authorities said the scheme primarily served Libyan businesspeople seeking to transfer money into and out of South Korea for commercial purposes. Some proceeds were reportedly disguised as trade payments to facilitate international transfers.
Investigators found that the operation generated billions of won in commissions for those involved.
In 2023, the Incheon District Court sentenced the Libyan national to two years in prison for violating South Korean financial transaction laws. Following the conviction, immigration authorities issued a departure order, which has now been upheld by the court.
The case highlights growing international scrutiny of cryptocurrency-based financial networks used to bypass banking regulations and anti-money laundering controls, an issue that continues to concern regulators worldwide.
