Two stand trial for major phone scam in Shanghai

Two men stood trial in a Shanghai court on Tuesday for their involvement in the city's first transnational phone scam targeting overseas residents.

Cui Yongzhe faces charges of defrauding people in South Korea out of more than 5 million yuan ($800,000) from February to June last year, according to prosecutors. Kang Huzhe is on trial for concealing and funneling money fleeced from the scam's victims. Both are Chinese of the Korean ethnic group and do not have criminal records.

According to the Ministry of Public Security, many criminals who perpetrate phone scams are now targeting residents of neighboring Asian countries because of increasing public awareness and recent crackdowns on scams in China.