‘Avatar Casino’ Officials at Isla Resort
Chief Arrested and Indicted... Manager and Deputy Manager Indicted Without Detention
Casino Games
[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo Byung-don] Associates who helped Kim Young-hong, chairman of Metropolitan and identified as the 'mastermind' behind the Lime Asset Management scandal involving a suspension of redemptions worth 1.6 trillion won, operate illegal overseas casinos have been brought to trial.
The Chuncheon District Prosecutors' Office Criminal Division 2 (Chief Prosecutor Kim Sang-gyun) announced on the 21st that it has arrested and indicted Choi, the casino manager, on charges of aiding and abetting gambling space establishment, and indicted Kim and Lee, deputy and assistant managers, without detention on the same charges.
They are accused of operating the illegal 'Avatar Casino' within Isla Resort in Cebu, Philippines, known as the source of Kim chairman's escape funds. The 'Avatar Casino' is a remote gambling system that provides users with login IDs and passwords and informs them of the fund transfer accounts.
Choi is identified as the person who practically operated the casino, which is reported to have recently reopened, and has also been confirmed as a shareholder of Mactan Isla Resort & Spa corporation. Besides this case, he has been reported to the Gangnam Police Station in Seoul for aiding a criminal's escape and to the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors' Office for evasion of compulsory execution. Choi was arrested after returning to Korea last month while evading police pursuit in the Philippines.
Choi is also known to have received daily casino operation reports and is considered the person most recently aware of the source of Kim chairman's escape funds and the flow of gambling funds. It is also understood that he exchanged instructions and reports with Jung, who was sentenced to two years in prison by the Seoul Southern District Court for gambling space establishment.
Kim and Lee, direct subordinates of Jung, voluntarily returned to Korea and were investigated before the authorities invalidated their passports. Jung was arrested and indicted on charges of operating the Avatar Casino at Isla Resort since December 2018, earning approximately 32 billion won in profits.
Additionally, the police plan to transfer the remaining 33 associates involved in the 'Avatar Casino,' currently under investigation, to prosecution soon. The total number of individuals related to the casino identified by the police, including those previously indicted, has reached 37.
Accordingly, the only remaining individual at the police investigation stage is Kim, a relative suspected of assisting Kim chairman's escape by delivering profits to him. The Gangnam Police Station in Seoul secured a recording file of a phone call with Kim chairman through Kim, who returned at the end of May, was banned from leaving the country, and responded to summons for investigation.
As investigations by prosecutors and police into Kim's closest aides continue one after another, the tracking of Kim chairman's whereabouts is expected to accelerate. Kim chairman, currently known to be on the run in the Philippines, is reported to be maintaining contact with associates only through Telegram and other means.
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