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Photo = Yonhap news |
[Alpha Biz= Kim Jisun] On May 27, the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office summoned Lee Ho-jin, former chairman of Taekwang Group, for questioning in connection with allegations of embezzlement and breach of trust under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes.
According to legal sources, the Criminal Division 3 of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office (Chief Prosecutor Choi Soon-ho) began investigating Lee in the afternoon as a suspect. He is accused of creating tens of billions of won in slush funds by misusing affiliated companies and of illicitly supporting construction costs for group subsidiaries through Taekwang Country Club.
The police had previously referred Lee and former Taekwang Group Executive Council Chairman Kim Ki-yoo to prosecutors without detention in September of last year. Earlier in May 2023, prosecutors sought an arrest warrant for Lee, but the court denied it, citing insufficient grounds for detention.
Taekwang Group has maintained that the charges were fabricated by Kim to shift blame onto Lee for crimes he himself committed, claiming Kim reported the matter to police in an attempt to deflect responsibility.
Lee had previously served a prison sentence after being convicted of embezzling ₩50 billion through false accounting and evading over ₩930 million in corporate taxes. He was released in October 2021 after completing his sentence. Over the course of eight years, his case went through seven trials, including two Supreme Court rulings and a retrial. He was later granted a special pardon on Liberation Day in 2023.
Lee had also faced investigation over allegations of forcing subsidiaries to purchase kimchi and wine products, but in April this year, the Fair Trade Investigation Division of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office (Chief Prosecutor Kim Yong-sik) cleared him of charges, citing insufficient evidence.
AlphaBIZ Kim Jisun(stockmk2020@alphabiz.co.kr)
