Alleged Embezzlement of 600 Million Won in Research Funds... Seoul National University Files Complaint Against Former Accounting Staff

Retired in June Last Year, Successor Found and Reported

A former accounting staff member at Seoul National University is under police investigation on charges of embezzling hundreds of millions of won in research funds over six years.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

According to the Gangnam Police Station in Seoul on the 4th, Seoul National University Industry-Academic Cooperation Foundation filed a complaint last December against Mr. A, who was in charge of accounting at the Department of Dermatology in the College of Medicine, on charges of occupational embezzlement.

Mr. A retired in June last year, and his successor discovered signs of embezzlement while reviewing the work details and reported it to the university. Seoul National University believes that Mr. A embezzled approximately 600 million won in research funds from 2017 until last year.

In the Department of Dermatology, there was a so-called "Pooling" practice where research funds obtained by several professors were collected into a joint account and used together, and Mr. A is reported to have embezzled research funds from this account.

A police official said, "There is a difference in the amount of embezzlement between the complainant and the accused, and since money was withdrawn multiple times over six years, we need to investigate each transaction one by one."