Prosecution Conducts Search and Seizure of Ssangbangwool Group Over Alleged Stock Price Manipulation

Suspicions of Stock Price Boosting Using North Korea Business Prospects
Warrant Issued Based on Analysis by Relevant Agencies

The prosecution has launched a compulsory investigation into allegations of stock price manipulation by Ssangbangwool Group.

Former Ssangbangwool Chairman Sungtae Kim appeared on April 28 as a witness at the plenary session of the National Assembly's "Special Committee for a National Investigation into the Allegations of Political Prosecutor Fabricated Indictments under the Yoon Seokyoul Administration." Photo by Hyunmin Kim

The Financial and Securities Crimes Joint Investigation Unit of the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors’ Office, led by Chief Prosecutor Shin Donghwan, announced on August 18 that it has been conducting a search and seizure operation at Ssangbangwool Group’s office located in Jung-gu, Seoul, since the morning, on suspicion of violations of the Capital Markets Act, among other charges.

The prosecution explained that after receiving the related complaint, it analyzed the findings in cooperation with relevant agencies, obtained a warrant from the court, and then executed the search.

This investigation began after the Democratic Party of Korea filed complaints against former Ssangbangwool Group Chairman Kim Sungtae and former Vice Chairman Bang Yongcheol, among others, on charges including violations of the Capital Markets Act. The Democratic Party reported to the prosecution that the core of the so-called Ssangbangwool North Korea remittance case is not the allegations that Chairman Lee Jaemyung’s visit to North Korea as Gyeonggi Province Governor was funded by a third party, but rather the group’s alleged stock price manipulation. It is alleged that the Ssangbangwool side tried to artificially boost the share prices of affiliates and related companies, highlighting their promotion of business projects in North Korea as a positive factor.

The prosecution is expected to analyze the materials secured through the search and seizure to verify the specific facts of the case and determine the involvement of related parties.

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