Ostem Employee's 30 Billion Won Gold Bars Seized and 25.2 Billion Won Accounts Frozen... What About Recovery of Remaining Embezzled Funds?

Police Seize 430 Gold Bars Weighing 1kg Each
252 Billion Won Remaining Securities Account Frozen
Real Estate Key Factor at Time of Crime

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo Byung-don] Police seized gold bars worth approximately 30 billion KRW from the residence of Lee Mo (45), an employee of Osstem Implant who embezzled 188 billion KRW of company funds. They also froze Lee's securities account containing 25 billion KRW, accelerating the recovery of the embezzled money.

According to the police on the 6th, the Gangseo Police Station in Seoul confiscated 430 one-kilogram gold bars from Lee's residence in Paju, Gyeonggi Province the previous day. This amount represents more than half of the 851 one-kilogram gold bars Lee had purchased. Additionally, the police froze a Kiwoom Securities account believed to have been used by Lee for securities trading to launder money. The account reportedly holds approximately 25 billion KRW in deposits.

So far, the police have secured about 55.2 billion KRW in embezzled funds from Lee, including gold bars worth around 30 billion KRW and the account containing 25.2 billion KRW. However, since the total embezzled amount reaches 188 billion KRW, further investigations are inevitable. The police are tracking the whereabouts of the remaining one-kilogram gold bars Lee purchased and are focusing investigative efforts on recovering embezzled funds, as they have identified that Lee dispersed the stolen money across multiple accounts.

Furthermore, the police discovered that Lee gifted three buildings located in Mokdong-dong, Paju, Gyeonggi Province?one each to his wife, younger sister, and brother-in-law?before and after going into hiding. They plan to investigate whether these properties were acquired with embezzled funds and if they can be reclaimed. While gold bars and cash assets can likely be confiscated immediately, the ownership timing of the gifted buildings must be verified to determine if it coincides with the period of the embezzlement.

Currently, Osstem expects to recover a significant portion of the embezzled funds soon as the police investigation progresses.

Lee is accused of embezzling 188 billion KRW of company funds by forging balance certificates and transferring public funds into personal bank and securities accounts while working in charge of finances at Osstem Implant.

The police executed a search warrant at Lee's residence in Paju around 8 p.m. the previous day. Upon discovering suspicious circumstances, they found Lee hiding in another unit within the building and arrested him at approximately 9:10 p.m.

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