7 Kenyan Marathon Runners Scammed Into Illegal Fish Farm Jobs in South Korea—How Did This Happen?

The South Korean Coast Guard has apprehended a current marathon runner and several accomplices for illegally arranging employment for foreign marathon runners at fish farms under the guise of inviting them to South Korean marathon events.

On Tuesday, the Changwon Coast Guard announced that it had forwarded the 29-year-old marathon runner, identified as the head of a local sports council in Gyeonggi Province, to prosecutors. The individual faces charges of violating immigration laws, forging official documents, obstructing official duties, and other offenses. Along with the runner, a former marathon coach and the runner’s spouse were also charged, though they were not detained.

The group allegedly forged invitation letters claiming that seven Kenyan marathon runners had been invited to participate in South Korean marathon events. Using these letters, they secured visas for the athletes at the South Korean Embassy in Kenya, facilitating their entry into the country. Once in South Korea, the runners were illegally employed at fish farms in South Gyeongsang Province, with the suspects collecting brokerage fees from the arrangement.

In July, the Coast Guard had already charged three brokers for arranging the illegal employment of Kenyan runners in Tongyeong, Geoje, and Goseong. This investigation led to the capture of the main perpetrators behind the fraudulent invitations and employment schemes.

According to the Coast Guard, the marathon runner exploited the fact that foreign athletes could easily enter South Korea if invited by a sports council. Together with the former coach and spouse, they began planning the operation in January of this year, branding it the “KK (Korea-Kenya) Project” to recruit 300 Kenyan workers.

The suspects promoted the illegal job opportunity to Kenyan athletes via social media, claiming the work at South Korean fish farms was easy and highly paid. They forged invitation letters using the names of naturalized athletes in South Korea and seals from sports councils in four local governments, submitting these to the embassy to secure visas.

From January to July, the Kenyan runners worked at fish farms in South Gyeongsang Province, reportedly sending wages totaling approximately 34 million won ($2,570) to the head of the operation’s account. Brokers deducted between 10,000 won ($8) and 20,000 won per day from the athletes’ wages as fees.

The investigation began in February after a tip-off about foreign nationals working illegally at fish farms. The Coast Guard uncovered a network using fraudulent invitations to bring in foreign workers and gradually arrested those involved starting in July.

All Kenyan nationals who entered South Korea were registered athletes with Athletics Kenya, a nation renowned for its marathon dominance. One of the athletes has even been confirmed to have won domestic competitions in South Korea. Reports suggest that these athletes accepted illegal employment due to the significant wage disparity driven by exchange rates.

Six of the seven athletes who entered South Korea with fake invitations have already returned to Kenya. One athlete’s whereabouts remain unknown, and the Coast Guard is actively tracking their movements.

Changwon Coast Guard Chief Kim Young Chul stated, “This case involved using forged documents under the names of naturalized athletes to arrange illegal employment. There is a pressing need to strengthen procedures and oversight for the invitation of foreign athletes by sports organizations.”