Entertainment Agency Corporate Funds Embezzlement Allegation
Previously Investigated by Police and National Tax Service
Singer Lee Sun-hee, who was investigated by the police on suspicion of embezzlement, is now facing allegations of using company funds for apartment interior renovations.
On the 8th, entertainment media TV Daily reported, citing a real estate official, that "Lee Sun-hee paid about 10 million KRW in 2014 from the corporate funds of One Entertainment for interior renovation costs of a redevelopment apartment located in Ichon-dong, Yongsan-gu, Seoul."
Singer Lee Sun-hee.
The official told the media, "The apartment was not used as Lee Sun-hee’s studio or a practice room for aspiring singers. We hope the police investigation will clarify why the apartment repair costs were processed with company money." In response, the agency Hook Entertainment did not issue any particular statement.
Earlier, Lee Sun-hee was investigated by the police on the 25th of last month on charges of embezzling funds from the entertainment agency One Entertainment, which she founded. She established One Entertainment in 2013 and served as its CEO until June of last year.
The police suspect that Lee Sun-hee embezzled company funds multiple times by, among other methods, falsely registering employees at the agency. However, it is known that during the police investigation, she denied the charges, stating, "Although I served as CEO, I did not intervene in the company’s management at all."
Suspicion of Collusion with Hook’s Kwon Jin-young... Registered as Directors in Each Other’s Companies
There are allegations that Lee Sun-hee has a close collusive relationship with Kwon Jin-young, CEO of Hook Entertainment, who is currently in a legal dispute with Lee Seung-gi. Previously, the police conducted a raid on Hook in November last year on suspicion of embezzlement and other charges. In December, it was revealed that the National Tax Service began an investigation into Hook and CEO Kwon, and One Entertainment also underwent a rigorous tax audit in February this year.
Lee and CEO Kwon have been registered as directors in each other’s agencies. At One Entertainment, Lee Sun-hee’s daughter, Ms. Yoon, and Hook’s CEO Kwon Jin-young were registered as inside directors but resigned from their positions in January 2019 and mid-last year, respectively. Meanwhile, Lee Sun-hee had been registered as an inside director at Hook for 14 years since its establishment.
It was also revealed that in 2021, CEO Kwon gifted shares amounting to 1% of Hook’s stock, valued at 440 million KRW, to Lee’s daughter. Regarding this, Hook explained that Lee Sun-hee is "a nominal director as a courtesy," and that the gift to Lee’s daughter was because "she has known her since childhood."
Additionally, on the 26th of last month, entertainment media Dispatch reported that One Entertainment paid Lee Sun-hee about 4.3 billion KRW over 10 years, at 50 million KRW per month, under the pretext of vocal training for Hook’s affiliated singers, and that Lee Sun-hee sent part of this amount to CEO Kwon.
However, Lee Sun-hee’s legal representative stated in an official position, "We ask for your understanding that it is difficult to provide detailed comments on an ongoing investigation, and we expect that the police’s wise judgment will clear up misunderstandings about Ms. Lee."
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