Actor Lee Seung-gi has ultimately declared a severance from his in-laws due to his father-in-law's arrest for fraud charges. He is still following 'sister-in-law' Lee Yoo-bi's Instagram account, however.

According to the legal circles on the 29th, the Seoul Southern District Prosecutor's Office Financial Securities Crime Joint Investigation Team (Director General Ahn Chang-joo) received an arrest warrant from the court for Lee, who is Lee Seung-gi's father-in-law and the new father of his wife, Lee Da-in, on charges of violating the Capital Markets Act.

It is reported that during the investigation of the securities trading manipulation case involving QUANTAPIA, which was reported to the Securities and Futures Commission, the prosecution captured evidence indicating that Lee was involved in stock price manipulation. Previously, the prosecution had sent nine individuals to trial on charges of illicitly gaining over 20 billion won by artificially inflating the stock price while promoting QUANTAPIA's quantum image sensor business. They were investigated for manipulating the market by leaking pre-merger information of the two companies to artificially boost the stock prices of QUANTAPIA and Jungang DM.

In addition to being involved in QUANTAPIA's stock price manipulation, Lee has also been sent to trial on charges of artificially inflating the stock price while operating a KOSDAQ-listed company from November 2014 to February 2016 and profiting from the sale of shares received through a capital increase, amounting to about 2.37 billion won.

In this regard, the first trial court recognized that they were involved in illegal false disclosures and sentenced Lee to 4 years in prison and a fine of 2.5 billion won. Co-manager B received a 3-year prison sentence and a fine of 1.2 billion won. However, the appellate court ruled that the disclosures regarding the means of generating funds for stock and convertible bond acquisitions by B and others could not be considered as a 'material matter' under the Capital Markets Act, and thus acquitted them.

However, the Supreme Court overturned this. The Supreme Court found an error in the appellate ruling and decided to vacate and remand the case last June. Yet, once again, new allegations emerged, and the court issued an arrest warrant for Lee, stating, "There is a concern that evidence may be destroyed."

Ultimately, Lee Seung-gi has backed down. He stated, "There had been ongoing illegal issues raised regarding my father-in-law, and a fine was imposed in the remand trial, but due to recent similar illegal activities, I have found myself in a situation where I am being prosecuted again. As someone who has waited for the results based on family trust, I cannot contain my devastated feelings regarding my father-in-law's wrongdoings."

Lee Seung-gi, who repeatedly appealed, "Please don’t touch my family," answered a question about his in-laws at the production report for his movie 'The Big Family' last November, saying, "My in-laws' matters are their own. Since getting married, my wife has gained independence from her family, and now we have our own independent household. I will act more cautiously to avoid causing misunderstandings in the future."

However, when his father-in-law was re-arrested and prosecuted, he expressed, "I deeply reflect on the careless remarks I made without adequately reviewing matters concerning my father-in-law last year. I believe that appropriate penalties must be imposed for illegal acts, and I sympathize with the feelings of the victims who have suffered due to my hasty judgments and sincerely apologize. I also extend my apologies to everyone who has trusted and understood me."

In particular, Lee Seung-gi stated, "The trust between family members has been severely damaged to the point where restoration is difficult due to this incident, and after much consideration, my wife and I intend to sever our relationship with my in-laws. Moving forward, I will strive to maintain a more correct set of values and live with a sense of responsibility for a healthy society. I apologize once again for any concern and disappointment caused by personal matters."

Currently, Lee Da-in's Instagram following list shows only her husband Lee Seung-gi's name, without her older sister Lee Yoo-bi. However, Lee Seung-gi is still following his sister-in-law Lee Yoo-bi. It remains to be seen what significance Lee Seung-gi's severance from his in-laws might hold.

[Photo] OSEN DB, provided

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