Fake Fisheries Businessman Involved in 10 Billion Won Fraud Sentenced to 7 Years in Prison

1st Trial: 8 Years Imprisonment → 2nd Trial "Additional Agreement with Victims" Reduced to 7 Years Imprisonment

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Kyung-jun] Kim Tae-woo, who was prosecuted for fraud involving billions of won while posing as a fisheries businessman, has been sentenced to 7 years in prison.

The Supreme Court's 2nd Division (Presiding Justice Lee Dong-won) on the 14th upheld the original sentence of 7 years in prison for Kim, who was charged with fraud under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes, and conspiracy to commit extortion and joint intimidation under the Act on the Punishment of Violent Crimes.

Kim was prosecuted on charges of deceiving seven victims between June 2018 and January 2021 by claiming that investing in “Seondong Ojingeo” (squid caught and immediately frozen on the boat) would yield 3 to 4 times returns within a few months, and collecting a total of approximately 11.62 billion won from them.

Additionally, Kim is accused of having his subordinates threaten victims who demanded the return of their investments, as well as using his subordinates to intimidate used car dealers and extort money from them.

Both the first and second trials found Kim guilty. However, unlike the first trial which sentenced him to 8 years, the second trial reduced the sentence to 7 years in consideration of Kim admitting most of the crimes and reaching additional settlements with the victims during the appeal. The Supreme Court also agreed with the second trial’s judgment.

This case drew public attention as it was revealed that the older brother of former lawmaker Kim Moo-sung invested approximately 8.64 billion won, and former journalist Song was defrauded of about 1.74 billion won by Kim. Former special prosecutor Park Young-soo was also implicated in allegations that he received a luxury Porsche vehicle from Kim in December 2020. The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency’s Violent Crime Investigation Unit, which investigated the case, referred former special prosecutor Park and others to the prosecution last September on charges of violating the Improper Solicitation and Graft Act, and the case is currently under investigation by the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office.

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