"Prison Sentence for CEO of Cryptocurrency Electronic Payment Company for 'Utility Bill Coin Payment Rewards'"

The CEO of a virtual currency electronic payment company and the CEO of its affiliate, who illegally collected investment funds amounting to about 855 billion won by promising up to 9% rewards for paying utility bills with a specific coin, were both sentenced to prison.

On the 17th, Judge Kim Jae-eun of the Criminal Division 13 at the Seoul Southern District Court sentenced Park, CEO of OnNetworks, who was indicted on charges of fraud and violation of the Act on the Regulation of Conducting Fund-Raising Business without Permission, to 12 years in prison on the 5th. The affiliate CEO Yeom and executive Kim were sentenced to 5 years and 3 years in prison, respectively.

Park and others were indicted on charges of conducting unauthorized fund-raising from 8,728 victims amounting to about 855 billion won from October 2021 to February last year by guaranteeing principal and promising 4-9% rewards for paying utility bills with a specific coin. From October to December 2021, they also held business briefings and embezzled about 35.8 billion won from 141 victims by collecting investment funds.

Previously, the prosecution demanded 15 years in prison for Park, 12 years for Yeom, and 5 years for Kim. In his final statement, Park said, "I ask for forgiveness from the victims, and if given two months, I am confident I can restore the damages to those present here," adding, "If I receive the first trial sentence and am given time even before the appeal, I believe I can ask for forgiveness and restore the damages." Yeom denied the charges, stating, "As an executive, I have moral responsibility, but it was beyond my role."

The court stated the sentencing reasons, saying, "(Park and others) committed crimes of Ponzi schemes, multi-level fraud, and unauthorized fund-raising in an organized, systematic, and professional manner by promoting false information using virtual assets and their transaction methods," and "the victims suffered significant economic losses and considerable economic and mental distress, and they are seeking severe punishment for the defendants, so the defendants bear very heavy responsibility and high blameworthiness."

However, reinvestments made with existing principal and profits were considered not to constitute actual damage, and the fact that some victims earned more profits than their investments was taken as a mitigating factor in sentencing.

In the trial on this day, Park and Yeom filed appeals on the 11th, and the prosecution also submitted an appeal to the court on the 12th.

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