Prosecutors Indict Senior Steel Company Executives in Massive 6 Trillion Won Rebar Price-Fixing Case
[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyung-min] The prosecution has indicted several high-ranking executives of major domestic steel manufacturers suspected of colluding in a rebar bidding cartel worth around 6 trillion won.
The Fair Trade Investigation Division of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office (Chief Prosecutor Lee Jeong-seop) announced on the 21st that three steel company executives who played a leading role in the collusion were arrested and indicted on charges of violating the Fair Trade Act and bid rigging. The remaining 19 accomplices and seven steel manufacturer corporations were also indicted without detention.
The seven companies?Hyundai Steel, Dongkuk Steel, Daehan Steel, Korea Steel, YK Steel, Hwanyeong Steel Industry, and Korea Steel Corporation?are accused of prearranging the winning quantities and bid prices in annual unit price contract bids for rebar issued by the Public Procurement Service from 2012 to 2018. The scale of the collusion amounts to approximately 6.8442 trillion won, the largest in the history of Public Procurement Service government bids.
They are investigated to have colluded by prearranging winning quantities and bid prices based on past Public Procurement Service contract volumes for 130 to 150 tons of rebar annually ordered regularly by the Public Procurement Service for public institutions. Earlier, in August, the Fair Trade Commission imposed fines totaling 256.5 billion won on them and reported the seven steel manufacturer corporations and nine current and former employees to the prosecution.
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The prosecution intensified the investigation by raiding the offices of the seven steel manufacturers on October 7 and summoning related individuals for questioning. Upon confirming indications of involvement by higher-ups such as CEOs, they requested the Fair Trade Commission to additionally indict 13 executives. On the 3rd, three steel company executives were arrested, and on the 12th and 15th, former Dongkuk Steel CEO Nam Yoon-young and Dongkuk Steel CEO Kim Yeon-geuk were summoned for questioning, respectively.
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