According to Reuters, employees at Kia's automobile plant in India are under police investigation for allegedly stealing and selling engines.
According to Reuters, Kia discovered that engines procured from Hyundai Motor in March had gone missing and reported it to the police in Andhra Pradesh in southern India.
Initial police investigation results revealed that one head of team employee and one department head responsible for engine shipments at the Kia plant forged documents such as invoices to smuggle 1,800 engines over three years and sell them in New Delhi and other areas.
Both individuals are said to have currently left the company.
The engines smuggled by them are estimated to be worth about $2.3 million (approximately 320 million won). Local police pointed out that this incident has had 'a widespread impact on industrial operation, stakeholder trust, and employment stability.'
Kia stated in a statement to Reuters, 'We discovered anomalies while strengthening our inventory management process and reported it to the police after conducting our own internal investigation,' adding, 'We are strengthening our internal control system and strict monitoring system.'