A Woman in Her 20s Sentenced to Prison for Embezzling Tens of Millions of Won from Company Funds While Working as a Secretary

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Daehyun] A woman in her 20s who embezzled tens of millions of won from company funds while working as a secretary for a small business owner was sentenced to prison in the first trial.

According to the legal community on the 19th, Chief Judge Hong Changwoo of the Criminal Division 1 at the Seoul Central District Court recently sentenced A (26, female), who was indicted on charges of embezzlement in the course of business, to 8 months in prison. She was also ordered to compensate approximately 54.24 million won in embezzled funds.

Chief Judge Hong stated the sentencing reasons, saying, "Considering the means and methods of the crime and the scale of the damage, the culpability is heavy. Although the victim company, which is small-scale, appears to have suffered significant damage from this case, the defendant has not made any particular efforts for settlement or damage recovery."

Earlier, A was prosecuted on charges of embezzling about 60 million won while working as a secretary and accountant for B, the CEO of a small business, from July 2020 to January of the following year. It was investigated that A transferred company deposits to her own account 34 times while holding the company’s bankbook and OTP card.

In court, A’s side admitted the fact of embezzlement in the course of business but argued, "Since a summary order has been confirmed for the crime, which is in a comprehensive single offense relationship (where multiple criminal acts constitute one crime) with the charges, a dismissal judgment should be pronounced." A dismissal is a ruling that terminates the lawsuit without judicial judgment when the conditions for prosecution are not met in a criminal trial.

A had already received a summary order with a fine of 1 million won last year at the Seoul Central District Court for embezzling a total of 4.5 million won in five instances while holding B’s personal bankbook and OTP card from July 2020, and since the judgment was confirmed, the argument is that no separate sentence should be imposed.

However, Chief Judge Hong rejected A’s claim, stating, "The facts of the crime in the summary order and the charges in this case cannot be considered to be in a comprehensive single offense relationship." He added, "The victim of the crime in the summary order was B personally, and the account where the embezzled money was held was a personal account. It appears that B separately filed complaints distinguishing personal funds from company funds."

A appealed against this ruling.

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