'Embezzlement of Overseas Corporate Funds' Former Lock&Lock Chairman Denies Charges in First Trial

Kim Jun-il, the founder and former chairman of Lock&Lock, a brand specializing in airtight containers, who was indicted on charges including embezzlement of overseas corporate funds, denied the allegations at his first trial.

On the morning of the 14th, Judge Lee Hwan-gi of the Seoul Central District Court Criminal Division 4 presided over the first hearing of Kim, who was indicted without detention on charges of embezzlement in the course of business and violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. Kim did not attend the initial hearing scheduled for March 15, citing reasons such as his stay in Vietnam, leading to the postponement of the hearing to this day.

Kim’s defense attorney stated, "We cannot accept the charges as a whole." However, since the case involves the Vietnam and Indonesia subsidiaries, the defense said they would clarify their position more specifically once the prosecution identifies the bribery recipients through investigative cooperation with local judicial authorities.

Kim was indicted last April on charges of embezzling $1.07 million (approximately 1.44 billion KRW) from the Vietnam and Indonesia subsidiaries between July 2013 and April 2017 by inflating construction costs.

He is also accused of bribing Vietnamese tax officials three times with a total of $91,537 (about 120 million KRW) to cover up tax investigations.

Founded in 1978 by Kim, Lock&Lock grew into one of Korea’s leading household goods companies, spearheaded by its flagship product, the four-sided locking airtight container. The company expanded its business into Southeast Asian markets such as Vietnam in the 2000s, but became embroiled in lobbying allegations involving local officials during its overseas market development.

In 2017, Kim sold all his shares to the private equity fund Affinity Equity Partners and stepped down from company management.

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