CEO Yoonwon Yoo of Sangsangin Group Arrested on Suspicion of Illegal Loans

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] Yoo Jun-won, CEO of Sangsangin Group, who is under prosecution investigation for allegations of illegal loans, was arrested on the 20th.

Kim Tae-gyun, the chief judge in charge of warrants at the Seoul Central District Court, held a pre-arrest detention hearing (warrant substantive examination) for Yoo and Park, a lawyer formerly with the prosecution, on the morning of the previous day, and issued an arrest warrant around 3 a.m. on the same day, stating that "the main criminal allegations are substantiated."

Judge Kim explained, "According to the substantiated criminal allegations, the actions of CEO Yoo and others have significantly damaged the fairness and reliability of the capital market, making the matter serious. Considering the suspects' positions and roles, degree of involvement, and the progress of the investigation so far, the reasons and necessity for detention are recognized."

Earlier, the Anti-Corruption Investigation Division 1 of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office (Chief Prosecutor Kim Hyung-geun) requested an arrest warrant for CEO Yoo on the 17th on charges including unfair trading under the Capital Markets Act.

Regarding lawyer Park, who is suspected of buying a large amount of Sangsangin Group stocks to support stock price defense, an arrest warrant was also requested on charges including market manipulation under the Capital Markets Act.

CEO Yoo is accused of granting preferential loans worth over ten billion won in February 2018 to WFM, a secondary battery company, through Sangsangin Savings Bank and Sangsangin Plus Savings Bank, using convertible bonds as collateral.

The prosecution suspects that at the time, CEO Yoo gave preferential treatment to WFM, a fund-related company operated by Cho Beom-dong, the fifth cousin of former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk, expecting to resolve issues such as eligibility screening while acquiring Goldbridge Securities.

CEO Yoo is also accused of issuing personal loans exceeding the legal limit using convertible bonds of WFM as collateral through Sangsangin Savings Bank and Sangsangin Plus Savings Bank.

Lawyer Park, a former prosecutor, is suspected of attempting to defend the stock price by purchasing hundreds of billions of won worth of Sangsangin stocks using funds from nominee corporations when CEO Yoo sought to raise acquisition funds for Goldbridge Securities by using Sangsangin Group stocks as collateral.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.