“Three times the principal amount guaranteed upon listing”... Woman in her 50s not prosecuted for recommending coin investment

The head of a multi-level sales organization who was sent on charges of receiving investment money by recommending coin investment through an internet shopping mall was cleared of the charges.

According to the legal community on the 23rd, the Jeonju District Prosecutors' Office decided not to indict A, a woman in her 50s, on charges of violating the law on the regulation of quasi-receipt practices on the 12th of last month.

Mr. A is accused of operating a multi-level sales organization in March 2021 and receiving tens of millions of won in coin investment from the victim, Mr. B.

In this process, when Mr. B complained about the burden of his financial situation, Mr. A promised to return the entire investment upon request and received 36 million won.

However, Ms. B announced her intention to withdraw due to her husband's opposition, and when the return of the promised investment money continued to be delayed, she sued them.

Mr. A denied the charges, saying that the promise he made with Mr. B was not a guarantee of the investment but a guide to refunding the product.

The shopping mall in question had a system that gave coins as free gifts when purchasing products, but he claimed that he had never recommended investing in coins directly.

He said that he was also a victim who lost about 300 million won, and that he had never done business by promising principal guarantees to an unspecified number of people.

The prosecution determined that Mr. A was not guilty.

In order for a quasi-receipt act to be established, it is necessary to make a 'business' agreement to guarantee the principal to an unspecified number of people, and the 'return' that Mr. A mentioned was intended to mean that the principal would be returned to a specific person complaining of difficult circumstances if the investment is withdrawn within one month.

Attorney Lee Kwang-woo of Daeryun Law Firm, who represented Mr. A, explained, "For a crime of quasi-receipt to be committed, the key is to conduct business with an unspecified number of people. We argued that this case was only a personal promise taking into account the special circumstances of one complainant and cannot be considered a business practice as defined by the law, and this led to a disposition of non-indictment."
 

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

[View full article]
"Three times the price upon listing, principal guaranteed"...Woman in her 50s who recommended coin investment not prosecuted (link)