Prosecutors Investigate Former Hanssem Chairman Over Suspected Furniture Bid Rigging

The Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office Fair Trade Investigation Division (Chief Prosecutor Lee Jeong-seop), which is investigating allegations of bid-rigging among domestic furniture companies, summoned former Hanssem Chairman Choi Yang-ha (74) as a witness for questioning on the 10th.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

According to the prosecution, more than 10 major domestic furniture companies, including Hanssem, Hyundai Livart, Enex, Nexis, and Woami, are suspected of engaging in large-scale collusion in the process of selecting suppliers for 'special sales furniture' to be installed in built-in form in newly constructed apartments. The scale of the companies' collusion is known to be around 1.3 trillion won. The prosecution deemed this case serious and initiated an investigation without a complaint from the Fair Trade Commission. They have also been considering applying charges for violations of the Fair Trade Act and the Framework Act on the Construction Industry.

Following a raid on the offices of nine furniture companies in the metropolitan area on the 1st of last month, the prosecution has been summoning and investigating current and former executives of these companies one after another. They plan to complete the investigation of current and former executives of the furniture companies by next week and decide whether to request the Fair Trade Commission to file charges against former Chairman Choi and others.

Since the Fair Trade Commission holds the 'exclusive right to prosecute' for violations of the Fair Trade Act, the prosecution can only indict if the Fair Trade Commission files a complaint.

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