'Private Equity Keyman' Jo Guk's 5th Cousin Nephew Sentenced Today... Prosecution Seeks 6 Years Imprisonment

Jo Beom-dong (37), the fifth cousin of former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk, who was indicted on suspicions of private equity fund involvement [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] The first trial verdict for Cho Beom-dong (37), the fifth cousin of former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk, who was indicted on suspicions related to private equity funds, will be delivered on the 30th.

The Seoul Central District Court Criminal Division 24 (Presiding Judge So Byeong-seok) will hold the sentencing hearing in the afternoon for Cho, who was detained and indicted on charges including violation of the Capital Markets Act, embezzlement under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes, and breach of trust in the course of duty.

Cho was brought to trial last October on charges of effectively operating the private equity firm Kolink Private Equity (Kolink PE), acquiring KOSDAQ-listed companies without capital, and attempting to boost stock prices through false disclosures.

He is also accused of embezzling approximately 7.2 billion KRW of corporate funds invested by Kolink PE’s private equity funds, including WFM and Wells CNT.

Earlier, at the closing arguments on the 2nd, the prosecution requested a six-year prison sentence for Cho, stating, "He colluded with power in a corrupt symbiotic relationship, providing undue benefits to those in power, and personally pursued private gains by exploiting this collusion."

The court’s judgment on Cho is expected to directly or indirectly affect the trials of former Minister Cho Kuk and his wife, Professor Jung Kyung-shim of Dongyang University.

The prosecution believes that when Cho Kuk was appointed Senior Secretary for Civil Affairs at the Blue House in May 2017 and was prohibited from making direct investments, Professor Jung used Cho as a proxy for covert investments. Jung was named as an accomplice in some of Cho’s embezzlement charges and charges of instructing evidence destruction.

Former Minister Cho Kuk is also indicted on charges of violating the Public Officials Ethics Act by failing to file a blank trust and falsely reporting assets, despite knowing about Professor Jung’s covert investments.

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