Prosecution Indicts Four in Custody for 'Yeongpung Paper Price Manipulation Suspicion'... Unfair Gains of 278.9 Billion Won

A group suspected of manipulating the stock price of Youngpoong Paper, a KOSPI-listed company, has been indicted while in custody. They are investigated to have gained approximately 278.9 billion KRW in illicit profits through stock price manipulation.

Yoon Mo and Lee Mo, who are suspected of market manipulation in connection with allegations of unfair trading involving Youngpoong Paper, appeared at the Seoul Southern District Court in Yangcheon-gu on the 20th of last month to undergo a pre-arrest detention hearing.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

On the 3rd, the Financial and Securities Crime Joint Investigation Division of the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors' Office (Chief Prosecutor Ha Dong-woo) announced that four members of the stock price manipulation organization were indicted in custody on charges of violating the Capital Markets Act.

They are accused of manipulating the price of 35.97 million shares of Youngpoong Paper a total of 38,875 times, obtaining illicit profits worth about 278.9 billion KRW.

At the beginning of this year, Youngpoong Paper's stock price was in the 5,000 KRW range, but it surged to the 50,000 KRW range by August. The prosecution believes that the four members raised the stock price through manipulation and executed arrest warrants on the 17th of last month. It was found that they used over 110 accounts to manipulate the stock price since October of last year.

After the arrests became known, accomplices sold large amounts of shares, causing Youngpoong Paper's stock price to hit the lower limit. As of that day, Youngpoong Paper's stock price was 4,220 KRW, up 5.24% from the previous day, which is about one-thirteenth of the peak price.

A prosecution official stated, "We will continue the investigation to confirm the full extent of the crimes committed by accomplices involved in the stock price manipulation, and we will also make every effort to confiscate the criminal proceeds obtained by the defendants."