Stealing 2.8 billion won by deceiving “guaranteed profits” and receiving 3 years and 6 months in prison

A man who stole billions of won from investors by promising guaranteed profits has been sentenced to prison.

According to the legal community on the 2nd, the 12th Criminal Division of the Seoul Eastern District Court recently sentenced company representative A, who was indicted on charges of fraud, to three years and six months in prison.

Mr. A was indicted on charges of embezzling approximately 2.8 billion won from 16 investors, including Mr. B, over a five-year period starting in 2018 by promising guaranteed principal and interest payments.

During this process, it was found that some victims were asked for additional money, saying, "There was a problem with the investment product."

As a result of the investigation, it was revealed that Mr. A used the money received from investors to invest in individual stocks and futures, and used a 'turnaround method' to secure new investors and pay interest to existing members.

Mr. A admitted to most of the charges, but denied fraud against one of the victims, Mr. B.

He claimed that the investment contract with Mr. B was conducted by an employee of the company he ran, and that he had never met Mr. B in person.

The court did not accept Mr. A’s claim.

The court said, “Mr. B entered into a contract based on the investment contract written by the defendant,” and added, “Even if the defendant did not directly recommend the investment, considering the status of the defendant and the employee, it seems likely that a report would have been made at the time the contract was concluded.”

At the same time, he said, "The money deposited by Mr. B was also used by the defendant for personal purposes. Just because there was no contact, it cannot be considered unrelated to the crime of fraud," and "The defendant defrauded many victims of money without the will or ability to return the money, causing the victims to suffer for a considerable period of time. The victims are pleading for punishment against the defendant."

Attorney Park Seong-dong of Daeryun Law Firm, who represented Mr. B, explained, "The crime of fraud must be judged generally and objectively, taking into account the specific circumstances at the time of the crime, such as the transaction situation. At the time of the incident, Mr. A was managing all accounts in the name of the company and fully managing the management of investment funds, so it appears that the court decided that Mr. A's charges were acceptable."
 

Jeong Eui-jin (jej88@ikbc.co.kr)

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Defrauded of 2.8 billion won by deceiving "guaranteed profits"... 3 years and 6 months in prison (link)