Fraud of 55 Billion Won and Other Charges... The Last Fugitive Overseas Related to the 'Sewol Ferry Disaster'
Nine years after the Sewol ferry disaster, Hyuk-gi Yoo (50), the second son of former Semo Group chairman Yoo Byung-eun, was forcibly repatriated to South Korea. Hyuk-gi is the last of the four suspects who fled overseas in connection with the Sewol ferry disaster to be returned to the country.
The second son of former Samho Group chairman Yoo Byung-eon, Yoo Hyuk-gi, is arriving through Incheon International Airport on the morning of the 4th, nine years after the Sewol ferry disaster occurred. [Image source=Yonhap News]
The Incheon District Prosecutors' Office arrested Yoo on charges of embezzlement and breach of trust under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes and repatriated him to Incheon International Airport on the 4th. The prosecution escort team received Yoo from U.S. investigative authorities on a Korean Air passenger flight departing from John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York the previous day and executed the arrest warrant.
The flight carrying Yoo was originally scheduled to arrive at Incheon Airport Terminal 2 at around 5:20 a.m. that day, but due to a delayed departure from New York, it landed at approximately 7:20 a.m.
After entering the arrival hall, Yoo responded to reporters' questions such as "Do you admit to the charges of embezzlement and breach of trust? What is your stance on the extradition process?" by saying, "I will cooperate sincerely with the investigation and clarify everything during the trial process." When asked about allegations that he fled, he stated, "I have never run away even for a single day." Regarding whether he had anything to say to the families of the Sewol ferry disaster victims, he replied, "I believe they are the most wronged people in the world."
Yoo was immediately taken to the Incheon District Prosecutors' Office, which is handling the Sewol-related investigation. The prosecution views Yoo as the successor to former chairman Yoo, who was identified as the de facto controlling shareholder of Cheonghaejin Marine, the Sewol ferry operator. Former chairman Yoo died while on the run in 2014. Yoo is suspected of conspiring with subsidiary company representatives to embezzle a total of 55.9 billion KRW under the pretext of consulting fees and causing losses to the company.
As a U.S. permanent resident, Yoo remained in the United States after the end of April 2014 despite three summonses from the prosecution and did not return to South Korea. The prosecution issued a red notice through Interpol and requested extradition. Eventually, Yoo was arrested in New York in July 2020 and faced extradition proceedings. The U.S. court ruled the following year that Yoo was subject to extradition.
Yoo filed a habeas corpus petition against this decision, but it was finally dismissed by the U.S. Supreme Court in January. Even after that, as the U.S. Department of State's extradition approval process continued, the Ministry of Justice invited U.S. Department of Justice officials to South Korea in May to resume the regular Korea-U.S. criminal cooperation working-level meeting after four years and requested prompt repatriation. With the approval of the U.S. Department of Justice, this repatriation was realized.
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