Unidentified individuals ordered chicken and other delivery foods from nine restaurants in South Korea without paying for the meals [1].
The incident highlights a growing trend of "muk-twi" fraud, where customers exploit delivery systems to obtain goods without payment. This pattern of theft places a significant financial burden on small business owners who rely on the integrity of digital ordering platforms.
According to reports, the fraud took place over the course of one year [1]. The suspects targeted establishments across three different areas: Hwaseong, Osan, and Suwon [1]. By repeatedly ordering food and failing to settle the bills, the individuals managed to avoid payment for a substantial volume of deliveries.
The total value of the unpaid food orders exceeds 1.5 million won [1]. The scheme involved nine different restaurants [1] that fell victim to the repeated orders.
Authorities are investigating the scale of the operation and seeking to identify the parties responsible for the losses. The use of multiple locations suggests a coordinated effort to evade detection by rotating the restaurants targeted in each order. Local business owners said the current delivery payment methods, which often rely on trust or delayed billing, are vulnerable to this type of systematic theft.
“The total value of the unpaid food orders exceeds 1.5 million won.”
This case underscores a systemic vulnerability in South Korea's rapid-growth delivery economy. As restaurants shift toward digital-first ordering, the gap between food delivery and payment verification allows bad actors to execute high-volume fraud across multiple jurisdictions before authorities can intervene.
