Actress Hwang Jung-eum has been charged with embezzling tens of billions of won from the company she owns and investing it in cryptocurrency, facing a crisis of potentially disappearing from all the advertisements and entertainment shows she has participated in.

On the 15th, the Jeju District Court’s 2nd Criminal Division Director General Lim Jae-nam held the first trial for Hwang Jung-eum, who was indicted on charges of violating the Act on the Aggravated Punishment, etc. of Specific Economic Crimes (embezzlement).

According to the facts of the indictment, Hwang Jung-eum has been indicted without detention for embezzling approximately 4.34 billion won from company funds, including 7 billion won invested in cryptocurrency under the pretext of an advance payment, by December 2022.

The affected management company has been identified as a family corporation wholly owned by Hwang Jung-eum, and it has been revealed that approximately 4.2 billion won of the embezzled amount was invested in cryptocurrency. In connection with this, Hwang Jung-eum’s side acknowledged the facts of the indictment and requested a continuation to repay the damages, which the court accepted.

Hwang Jung-eum’s side noted regarding the charge, “The defendant invested in cryptocurrency with the intention of growing the company, and since the corporation could not hold cryptocurrencies, it was temporarily invested in her name, leading to this criminal act,” and added, “The revenue of the management company ultimately belongs to the defendant’s activities. The defendant has sold some cryptocurrencies to repay part of the damages and is trying to repay the remaining amounts by selling real estate, so please consider the motive for the crime.”

Hwang Jung-eum also stated through her agency, “I had the desire to grow the company, and in 2021, I received a suggestion from people around me to invest the company funds through cryptocurrencies, and I jumped into cryptocurrency investment, which I was not well acquainted with. Though the funds were in the company’s name, they were earnings from my activities, so I think I made an immature decision.”

She continued, “To correct the wrong transactions, I am currently with another agency and am thoroughly settling the relationship with the company. I have repaid a significant portion of the funds I withdrew from the company as an advance payment by liquidating personal assets, and I am in the process of settling the remaining unpaid amounts,” and bowed, adding, “I apologize once again and will fulfill my responsibilities as needed.”

However, Hwang Jung-eum is currently appearing on SBS Plus and E Channel’s entertainment program “Because I’m Single.” The production team of “Because I’m Single” also stated, “We are aware of the controversy regarding Hwang Jung-eum and are verifying the details with the agency. Depending on the response, whether to edit or the future direction will be decided,” but after the response from Hwang Jung-eum’s side, they added, “we are in internal discussions.”

With the embezzlement charges surfacing just one week before the program’s end, there is a possibility that her appearances may be fully edited out. Advertisements featuring Hwang Jung-eum have already been removed. On the 15th, Daesang Welllife New Care deleted advertisements featuring Hwang Jung-eum from its official accounts on YouTube, Instagram, and Naver Blog.

This was an advertisement released on the 12th, featuring many actors from the MBC sitcom “High Kick Through the Roof,” and it was even reported that a daughter was born between Hwang Jung-eum and Choi Daniel. However, with the advertisement being completely deleted and facing risks of full edit from entertainment programs, the aftershocks of Hwang Jung-eum’s embezzlement are intensifying.

[Photo] OSEN DB, program poster

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