Famous Lecture Planning Company CEO Found Guilty in First Trial for Nonpayment of Service Fees Worth 300 Million Won

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Seon-ae] Han Dong-heon (40), CEO of the lecture-specialized company 'Mike Impact,' which has planned numerous lectures targeting youth, was sentenced guilty in the first trial for failing to pay a total of around 300 million KRW to stage service companies and others.

According to the legal community on the 13th, Judge Kim Seong-dae of the Criminal Division 6 at the Seoul Western District Court recently sentenced CEO Han, who was tried on charges of fraud, to 1 year and 6 months in prison with a 2-year probation.

CEO Han was indicted in January last year on charges of failing to pay about 120 million KRW to a company contracted to install LED electronic signboards and related services between 2018 and 2019. Around the same time, another performance production company was found to have not received about 80 million KRW, and a stage installation company about 50 million KRW.

The total unpaid amount to eight victims was calculated to be approximately 346 million KRW.

During the trial, CEO Han claimed, "Due to temporary financial difficulties caused by subsequent circumstances beyond the defendant's control, such as weather or social atmosphere, the payments could not be made, and there was no criminal intent to defraud."

However, the court did not accept CEO Han’s claim, noting that Mike Impact had been operating in a so-called 'ponzi scheme' manner since around May 2018, using ticket sales from self-produced performances or payments from commissioned performances to pay off unpaid amounts to other service companies involved in previous performances, indicating the company's financial situation was extremely poor.

According to the court, Mike Impact had been operating at a net loss almost continuously since its establishment in 2008, except for some periods around 2017. From around 2017, the company was unable to pay employee wages and eventually filed for corporate rehabilitation at the Seoul Rehabilitation Court in May 2019.

The court stated the sentencing rationale, saying, "Considering that the defendant had almost no personal assets at the time of the incident, it can be acknowledged that there was at least a negligent intent to defraud," but also took into account "the fact that the defendant repaid all or a significant portion of the damages and reached settlements so that the victims did not want prosecution, and that there were no prior convictions exceeding fines or similar offenses."

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