A former legal advisor of IDS Holdings, a quasi-deposit company that conducted a multi-level marketing fraud worth over 1 trillion won, was sentenced to prison in the first trial for aiding and abetting fraud.
On the morning of the 6th, Judge Gu Chang-gyu of the Seoul Central District Court Criminal Division 12 sentenced lawyer A, who was indicted without detention on charges of aiding and abetting fraud, to two years in prison. The court stated, "Due to the defendant's involvement in the crime, victims suffered damages exceeding 300 billion won," and added, "Although the Attorney Act stipulates that lawyers must strive to maintain social order, the defendant provided false information to investors." However, considering A’s sincere participation throughout the lengthy trial, the court did not order immediate detention.
Lawyer A, who was the defense attorney for former IDS Holdings CEO Kim Seong-hoon, known as the "Second Jo Hee-pal," worked as a legal advisor for IDS Holdings and is accused of aiding and abetting fraud by giving lectures from April to August 2016 to unspecified investors and branch managers, claiming that Kim’s punishment was unjust. He is also accused of repeatedly lecturing that IDS Holdings was operating normally, generating profits, and that future profits would be substantial.
Former CEO Kim was sentenced to 15 years in prison in 2017, confirmed by the Supreme Court, on charges of deceiving about 10,000 investors from November 2011 to August 2016 by promising high returns on investments and pocketing 1.096 trillion won.
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