A former executive of BNK Gyeongnam Bank was sentenced to 35 years in prison in the second trial of a case involving the largest embezzlement amount ever at 300 billion won. This is the same conclusion as in the first trial.
The Seoul High Court Criminal Division 6-3 (presided over by Director General Lee Ye-seul) on the afternoon of the 14th sentenced former head of investment banking at BNK Gyeongnam Bank, Mr. Lee, who faced charges of violating the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes (embezzlement), to the same 35 years in prison and 15.9 billion won in forfeiture as in the first trial, stating that the sentencing in the first trial was not seen to have exceeded a reasonable range of discretion.
Mr. Lee embezzled a total of 308.9 billion won from 17 project financing (PF) projects he managed from 2008 until July 2021 while working in the investment banking department of Gyeongnam Bank. This amount is more than four times larger than the previous largest embezzlement incident recorded in 2022 at Woori Bank, which involved 66.8 billion won. He used the embezzled funds to purchase gold bars and gift certificates, as well as for real estate purchases, stock investments, and luxury goods.
Mr. Lee argued in the second trial that the value of approximately 101 kg of gold bars purchased with the embezzled funds should be reassessed. The confiscated gold bars, about 101 kg, are to be used to compensate for the damages incurred by BNK Gyeongnam Bank, and since gold prices have recently risen, he stated they should be reassessed at a higher value than at the time of confiscation for use in restitution. If the scale of damage recovery increases, it could affect sentencing. However, the court stated, 'There is no need to further reflect the fluctuation in the price of the items' and did not accept this argument.
Hwang, a former employee of Korea Investment & Securities, who was indicted as an accomplice for aiding Mr. Lee's embezzlement, was also sentenced to 10 years in prison, the same as in the first trial. The court stated, 'Hwang denies the accomplice relationship but served as an executive of the corporation established by Mr. Lee to commit embezzlement, and conducted stock investment work for Mr. Lee with the embezzled funds,' adding, 'Although he claimed part of the money received from Mr. Lee was spent on rent, this was an expenditure made to obtain criminal proceeds as an accomplice.'
Choi, a friend of Hwang who was indicted for formatting the hard disk of the computer used by Mr. Lee to destroy evidence, was sentenced to one year in prison with a two-year probation, the same as in the first trial.