A married man who impersonated a single lawyer to swindle more than 20 million won ($17,000) from a woman was given two years in prison on Monday.

Seoul’s northern district court said it had determined the 37-year-old swindler surnamed Kim to be guilty of deceit as he had neither the intention nor the ability to pay back what he had “borrowed.”

Kim had impersonated a chief lawyer at an existing law firm by using fake name cards.

He duped a 34-year-old woman he had met through a dating app into believing he had graduated from one of the top universities in Korea and had worked as a prosecutor at a major court before becoming a lawyer.

Kim borrowed a credit card from this woman, claiming to have lost his wallet and to be in need of money. He then spent more than 20 million won over 424 transactions.

In court, Kim admitted to having lied and that he had no means to repay the woman as he held no stable job.

Kim has committed similar crimes against women he met online. He pretends to be single when in truth he is married and has a son.

By Lim Jeong-yeo (kaylalim@heraldcorp.com)