Influencer Lee Seul Bi, known as the 'stock goddess' on social media, has been sentenced to an 8-year prison sentence for committing fraudulent crimes amounting to 16 billion KRW (12.5 million USD).

According to a report by Asia Economy on July 28, the second division of the Supreme Court upheld the lower court's decision, sentencing Lee Seul Bi to eight years in prison and a fine of 3.16 billion KRW (2.47 million USD) after she was found guilty of violating the Act on Aggravated Punishment (Fraud), etc. of Specific Economic Crimes.

Since approximately March 2015, Lee Seul Bi had gained significant attention on social media, where she was hailed as a 'stock master' and 'scalping (short) master' by the public. Her Instagram account amassed a following of around 26,000 users. She showed off her luxury lifestyle with fancy cars and jewelry on social media.

However, it was later revealed that Lee had incurred substantial losses in stock and futures trading, amounting to 4.2 billion KRW (3.3 million USD). Unable to cover her credit card bills, apartment management fees, and interest on bank loans, she resorted to manipulating the numbers on her securities account, such as profits and losses, rates of return, and settlement amounts. She then posted doctored photos on Instagram, falsely presenting herself as making tens of millions of KRW in stock trading on a daily basis.

Between April and July 2017, she exploited her reputation as a 'stock master' to deceive victims, promising them fixed monthly profits of 7-10% and the freedom to withdraw their principal amounts at any time. As a result of this scheme, Lee managed to obtain 11.08 billion KRW (8.7 million USD) from numerous victims, each of whom suffered losses exceeding 500 million KRW (~391,773 USD).

Additionally, Lee collected a total of 4.27 billion KRW (3.3 million USD) from 37 other victims using similar tactics. Furthermore, she obtained approximately 500 million KRW from 154 individuals who sought to receive stock lectures from her, charging them 3.3 million KRW (2,586 USD) per person.

Due to her fraudulent activities, Lee now faces a significant prison term and a monetary fine for her deceitful actions that caused substantial financial harm to numerous victims.