Found All 100kg of Missing Gold Bars... Remaining Discovered at Younger Sister's House

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo Byung-don] The remaining gold bars, which had been hidden and whose whereabouts were unknown after Lee (45, detained) embezzled 221.5 billion won of company funds from Osstem Implant, have all been discovered.

The police announced on the afternoon of the 12th that they seized 100 gold bars weighing 1kg each at the residence of Lee's younger sister. It is known that the police initiated a search after detecting the possibility that the unaccounted gold bars were hidden at the sister's residence through analysis of nearby closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage.

With the seizure of these 100 gold bars, the police have secured all 851 gold bars that Lee purchased with the embezzled funds. During the arrest of Lee on the 5th, the police confiscated 497 gold bars, and on the 11th, they seized 254 gold bars from Lee's father's residence. Additionally, four gold bars that Lee had not yet collected are frozen at the Korea Gold Exchange.

Accordingly, the police have secured the usage of the embezzled amount of 221.5 billion won, excluding the 33.5 billion won that Lee has returned, totaling 188 billion won in damages. This includes gold bars worth approximately 68.1 billion won, frozen stocks worth about 25.2 billion won, and cash amounting to 440 million won. However, it is difficult to secure the 75.1 billion won loss Lee incurred during stock investments. A police official explained, "There may be additional amounts secured depending on the results of future seizure and confiscation applications."

Meanwhile, with the discovery of gold bars at the residences of Lee's family, the possibility of collusion in the crime among Lee and his family members is gaining weight. So far, the police have booked four people: Lee's wife, sister-in-law, younger sister, and younger brother. Among them, Lee's wife and sister-in-law have been booked on charges of embezzlement in the course of business and concealment of criminal proceeds under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes, effectively identifying them as accomplices.

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