Former Ssangbangwool Treasurer Files Lawsuit to Refuse Extradition from Thailand

[Asia Economy Reporter Oh Su-yeon] It has been reported that Kim Seong-tae, the former chairman of Ssangbangwool Group, who was arrested in Thailand while living in exile abroad, has filed a lawsuit with the local court to refuse extradition.

According to authorities on the 8th, Kim, the head of finance at Ssangbangwool Group, filed an extradition refusal lawsuit with the Thai court shortly after being arrested by Thai police earlier this month. Kim is known to be a relative of the former chairman Kim, who is suspected of various corruptions including embezzlement and breach of trust.

With Kim, a close aide of former chairman Kim and someone who knows the entire financial flow of Ssangbangwool Group, being arrested, it is expected that the prosecution’s investigation will gain momentum. If the Thai court accepts Kim’s lawsuit and proceeds with the trial, it could take several months at minimum before Kim returns to Korea to undergo prosecution investigation.

The Criminal Division 6 of Suwon District Prosecutors’ Office (Chief Prosecutor Kim Young-nam) is currently conducting a comprehensive investigation into Ssangbangwool Group’s ▲suspected violations of the Capital Markets Act ▲suspected smuggling of US dollars ▲suspected payment of legal fees for Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea.

Kim, who is under investigation by the prosecution for charges including embezzlement and breach of trust related to Ssangbangwool, reportedly fled abroad in May this year. In response, the prosecution requested Interpol to issue a red notice for Kim and invalidated his passport through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Former chairman Kim Seong-tae left for Singapore at the end of May this year, just before the prosecution began a search and seizure of Ssangbangwool Group, and has been in exile abroad for seven months. The prosecution has frozen hundreds of millions of won worth of stocks held under his name to prevent their disposal, issued an Interpol red notice, and invalidated his passport to pressure his return.