Kim Jaehyun, CEO of Optimus, Sentenced to 25 Years in Prison for 1 Trillion Won Fund Fraud

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] Kim Jaehyun, CEO of Optimus Asset Management, who was indicted on charges of fraud involving a fund worth over 1 trillion won, was sentenced to 25 years in prison in the first trial.

The Seoul Central District Court Criminal Division 34 (Presiding Judge Heo Seonah) sentenced CEO Kim, who was detained and indicted on charges including fraud under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes, to 5 billion won in fines along with the prison term on the 20th. The court also ordered the confiscation of 75.175 billion won. The court sentenced Lee Dongyeol, the second-largest shareholder of Optimus, and director Yoon Seokho to 8 years in prison each. In addition to the prison sentences, Lee was fined 300 million won and ordered to pay 5.175 billion won in confiscation, while Yoon was fined 200 million won.

CEO Kim and others were prosecuted on charges of raising approximately 1.3526 trillion won from investors from April 2018 to June last year by claiming to invest in public institution accounts receivable, then using the funds for acquiring non-performing bonds and rolling over the fund. The confirmed number of victims reaches 3,200, and considering that corporations and organizations are among them, the actual number of victims is estimated to be higher. The amount of damage not yet compensated amounts to 554.2 billion won. In the previous sentencing hearing, the prosecution requested life imprisonment for CEO Kim, 25 years in prison for Lee, and 20 years in prison for Yoon, respectively.

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