Prosecutors Indict Kim Jaehyun, CEO of Optimus, and Three Other Executives for 'Fund Fraud'

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyung-min] Four executives of Optimus Asset Management, accused of fund fraud, have been brought to trial.

The Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office Investigation Division 1 (Chief Prosecutor Oh Hyun-chul) on the same day indicted CEO Kim and Optimus director Yoon Mo on charges of ▲fraud under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes ▲fraud ▲violation of the Capital Markets Act ▲forgery of private documents ▲use of forged private documents, detaining them in custody, while another director Song Mo (50) was indicted without detention.

Optimus's second-largest shareholder Lee Mo was indicted in custody on charges of ▲fraud under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes ▲fraud ▲violation of the Capital Markets Act only.

Lee is the CEO of lending company D, into which the funds from the Optimus fund flowed.

Kim and others are accused of raising 1.2 trillion won from 2,900 investors between April 2018 and June 2020 by claiming to invest in public institution accounts receivable, then using the funds for acquiring non-performing loans and rolling over the fund.

Except for Lee, the other three are also accused of forging and using about 176 accounts receivable transfer contracts with false content stating that they had acquired public institution accounts receivable from a construction company during the due diligence process of fund sellers from April to June.

The prosecution is currently expanding the investigation by examining the initial problems of the fund investment during the tenure of former CEO Lee Hyuk-jin.

They have also attempted to secure the custody of a person suspected of planning the Optimus fund fraud since former CEO Lee's era.

On the 20th, the prosecution requested an arrest warrant for Yoo Mo, general advisor of the new business division of the KOSDAQ-listed cosmetics company 'Skin&Skin.'

Chief Judge Choi Chang-hoon of the Seoul Central District Court, in charge of warrants, held a pre-arrest detention hearing (warrant substantive examination) for Yoo at around 10:30 a.m. that day to consider the necessity of detention. The decision on Yoo's detention is expected to be announced late in the afternoon.

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