'Optimus Fund Fraud Involvement' Skin&Skin Advisor Faces Imprisonment Decision

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyung-min] The chief advisor of the new business division at the cosmetics company Skin&Skin, suspected of being involved in the 'fund fraud' of Optimus Asset Management, is facing detention.

Yu Mo (39), an advisor at Skin&Skin, is undergoing a pre-arrest detention hearing (warrant substantive examination) presided over by Judge Choi Chang-hoon, who is in charge of warrants at the Seoul Central District Court, starting at 10:30 a.m. on the 22nd.

Yu arrived at the court around 10:02 a.m. that day and entered the courtroom without responding to reporters' questions.

Yu's detention decision is expected to be made as early as late afternoon on the same day.

Yu is suspected of being involved in the mask distribution business between Skin&Skin and Optimus. Last month, Optimus invested 15 billion KRW in Skin&Skin under the pretext of the mask distribution business. Prosecutors suspect that this fund was used by Kim Jae-hyun, CEO of Optimus (50, detained), and others to prevent the suspension of fund redemptions.

Optimus received funds from Skin&Skin through its subsidiary E-Plus, a company wholly owned by Yoon Mo (43, detained), who is both a director of Optimus and the representative lawyer of H Law Firm.

Additionally, prosecutors believe that Yu was involved in the process where the Korea Information and Communication Radio Promotion Agency, an institution under the Ministry of Science and ICT, invested 74.8 billion KRW in Optimus and later withdrew the investment during the same period.

The Investigation Division 1 of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office (Chief Prosecutor Oh Hyun-chul) requested an arrest warrant for Yu on the 20th on charges including fraud and embezzlement under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes, and forgery of private documents.

Earlier, prosecutors detained three individuals on the 7th: CEO Kim, the second-largest shareholder of Optimus Lee Mo (45), and Yoon. Lee is the CEO of loan company D, where funds from the Optimus fund flowed. The arrest warrant request for director Song Mo (50) was dismissed at that time.

These Optimus executives are accused of raising thousands of billions of KRW from investors under the pretense of investing in public institution accounts receivable, then forging documents to actually invest in loan companies and insolvent businesses.

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