Court Grants Bail to Cho Hyun-beom, CEO of Hankook Tire, in Subcontractor Bribery Case
[Asia Economy Reporter Song Seung-yoon] Cho Hyun-beom, CEO of Hankook Tire & Technology (formerly Hankook Tire), who was arrested and indicted on charges of receiving bribes from subcontractors and embezzling company funds to pocket a large sum of money, has been released on bail and will face trial without detention.
According to the legal community on the 24th, Judge Park Jin-hwan of the Seoul Central District Court Criminal Division 1 accepted Cho's bail request the day before. Cho had filed a bail application with the court on the 18th of this month, requesting a trial without detention.
Cho is accused of receiving bribes totaling around 600 million won, amounting to several million won monthly, from subcontractors as payment for deliveries. He is also charged with regularly embezzling about 200 million won from affiliate company funds (charges include breach of trust and embezzlement in the course of duty).
The prosecution confirmed that Cho used nominee accounts during the process of receiving bribes and embezzling company funds, and applied charges for violations of the Act on the Regulation of Concealment of Criminal Proceeds and the Real Name Financial Transactions and Confidentiality Act. In earlier investigations, Cho explained that "he returned all the damages," but the prosecution views that he effectively received kickbacks from subcontractors by exploiting the hierarchical relationship.
Cho's side previously stated in court, "We acknowledge receiving about 615 million won from the subcontractor's CEO," but added, "We intend to dispute whether there was any illicit solicitation in the breach of trust charge."
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Meanwhile, Cho, the second son of former Hankook Tire Chairman Cho Yang-rae, joined Hankook Tire in 1998. He was appointed CEO of Hankook Tire last year. He also serves as Chief Operating Officer (COO) of the holding company, Hankook Technology Group. In 2001, he married Su-yeon, the third daughter of former President Lee Myung-bak.
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