Lee Seunggi's Side: "Non-Return of 10.5 Billion Won Jeonse Deposit Was Sophisticated Fraud... Seeking Severe Punishment for Cha Gawon"

"Non-return of Jeonse Deposit Is a Criminal Offense, Not Just a Civil Matter"
73 Billion Won of the Deposit Was Financed Through Bank Loans

Singer and actor Lee Seunggi has announced a strong response regarding Cha Gawon, CEO of One Hundred Label, and the issue of non-returned jeonse deposit.

On August 6, Lee Seunggi's legal representative, Hyunmyeong Law Office, released an official statement regarding the expiration of the jeonse lease contract.

According to Lee Seunggi’s side, the announcement was inevitable due to the overlap between CEO Cha’s detention and the expiration date of the lease contract. They stated, “This issue of not returning the jeonse deposit is not simply a civil breach of contract, but rather falls within the realm of a criminal offense.” They further asserted, “This case goes beyond a landlord merely lacking the intent or ability to return the deposit. It appears that a sophisticated fraud scheme was employed, in which a large loan was taken out under a famous celebrity’s name and the jeonse deposit was misappropriated. This makes the nature of the crime even more malicious than an ordinary jeonse fraud.”

Singer and actor Lee Seunggi. Yonhap News Agency

Lee Seunggi’s camp also pointed out suspicions that CEO Cha’s side had planned for a loan under Lee Seunggi’s name even before the contract was signed. According to Lee’s side, CEO Cha originally intended to sell the property to Hyorim Industries for 7 billion won, but abruptly canceled the contract and moved forward with an appraisal to pursue a jeonse contract at a higher amount than the original sale price. The appraisal was initially carried out with “Lee Taemin’s collateral” and then changed to “Lee Seunggi’s collateral.” During this process, the structure was arranged to enable a large-scale jeonse loan of 7.3 billion won, after which the jeonse contract with Lee Seunggi was signed.

They specifically noted that after receiving Lee Seunggi’s deposit, CEO Cha and his spouse acquired the ownership of high-value real estate from a trust company, stating, “It appears they deliberately planned to use a celebrity’s jeonse loan for personal use and then not return the deposit at the end of the contract, as part of a premeditated fraud.”

Lee Seunggi’s representatives further commented, “While Cha Gawon has been detained, his accomplices continue to enjoy a luxurious lifestyle off his criminal profits without remorse. The artist invested in preparing for an actual move, but those costs have now become an additional loss.”

They continued, “The detention of Cha Gawon has provided a measure of relief for the staff and the artist. Going forward, we will do our utmost to ensure that those responsible face strict punishment, and will also focus fully on Lee Seunggi's entertainment activities so that such crimes are not repeated.”

Previously, in 2024, Lee Seunggi signed a contract for a luxury villa in Hannam-dong, Yongsan-gu, Seoul, owned by CEO Cha and his spouse, with a jeonse deposit of 10.5 billion won. Of this, 7.3 billion won was reportedly financed through a bank loan.

Regarding the contract process, Lee Seunggi’s side claimed, “CEO Cha persistently encouraged Lee to move in as a jeonse tenant and induced a contract with a deposit inflated beyond market value.” Conversely, CEO Cha’s side countered, “Because Lee Seunggi owns multiple properties, he requested the jeonse contract method to avoid a heavy tax burden.”

Meanwhile, CEO Cha was detained on August 3 on charges of receiving an advance payment of 24.2 billion won from Nomus Co., Ltd. after signing a contract to develop a business using the intellectual property (IP) of an artist managed by his entertainment agency without carrying out the actual business.

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