40-Year-Old Man Sentenced to Prison for Embezzling Over 150 Million Won Under the Pretext of Business Funds

A man who deceived others by promising to repay a loan with interest and embezzled about 150 million won was sentenced to imprisonment.

On the 9th, Judge Kim Jae-eun of the 13th Criminal Division at the Seoul Southern District Court announced that on the 18th of last month, Lee (44), accused of fraud, was sentenced to 1 year and 6 months in prison.

Lee, who was running a food ingredient distribution business, told the victim, "Due to COVID-19, I have not been able to receive payment for goods from other restaurant operators," and "I urgently need business funds, but if you lend me money, I will pay interest equivalent to bank rates and repay it." However, Lee was in a financially difficult situation at the time, with considerable debts and unpaid payments from business partners, making it impossible to fully repay the money.

From July 6, 2021, to September 13, 2022, Lee received a total of approximately 155,917,000 won from the victim and used it for stock investments and other purposes.

The court stated the sentencing reasons, saying, "The defendant has a prior record of similar crimes, and the amount of damage caused by the fraud is about 150 million won. Considering that the defendant has not been forgiven by the victim and the motive for the crime, among other sentencing factors, imprisonment is imposed."

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