Court Sets Maximum Seizure Preservation Amount of 137.7 Billion KRW for Ostem Implant Embezzlement Funds

Police Apply for Pre-Indictment Seizure and Preservation Recovery
Court Approves... Maximum Limit Up to 133.7 Billion Won
Actual Recovered Amount Expected to Be Much Lower

Lee Mo, who is accused of embezzling 221.5 billion KRW from Osstem Implant, is being transferred to the prosecution from Gangseo Police Station in Seoul on the 14th. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo Byung-don] The court has decided to confiscate and secure the embezzled funds of Lee Mo (54), an employee of Osstem Implant who was arrested and sent for embezzling 221.5 billion KRW of company money, allowing the amount subject to confiscation and securing to be up to 137.7 billion KRW.

The Seoul Southern District Court recently approved the pre-indictment confiscation and securing order requested by the police, setting the upper limit for the amount to be secured accordingly.

Pre-indictment confiscation prevents the suspect from disposing of illegally acquired assets such as real estate before the court's judgment on the charges. Pre-indictment securing is a measure to prevent the suspect from disposing of assets like real estate to recover the proceeds obtained through crime if the suspect has used the illicit gains.

According to the court order, Lee’s stocks and real estate have been frozen to prevent disposal at will, but to prepare for possible increases in real estate prices or stock values, securing up to 137.7 billion KRW is permitted. However, since it was found that Lee incurred losses of 76.1 billion KRW from stock investments, it is expected to be difficult to recover the embezzled amount up to the court-set upper limit. In fact, despite the court’s decision, the currently secured assets amount to about 39.5 billion KRW, and 855 gold bars weighing 1 kg each (worth 68.1 billion KRW) purchased with the embezzled funds are being managed as seized property.

Meanwhile, when applying for the pre-indictment confiscation and securing order, the police recognized Lee’s embezzled funds as “crime victim property” under the Anti-Corruption Property Confiscation Act and applied a special provision that allows the state to confiscate and secure the property when victim recovery is difficult.

Generally, crimes such as fraud, embezzlement, and breach of trust involve victims, and the property lost is money that the victim should recover from the criminal, so the state does not intervene to confiscate or secure it. However, under the special provision of the Anti-Corruption Property Confiscation Act, if it is recognized that “the victim cannot exercise the right to claim the return of property or claim damages, making victim recovery extremely difficult,” confiscation and securing can be carried out, and the property is returned to the victim.