"Money Borrowed from Company A Repaid Last June," Claim
Lawyer: "24% Annual Late Payment Penalty Is Excessive"
Broadcaster Jung Joon-ha's apartment located in Samseong-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, which he owns, has been put up for auction, and he has expressed his frustration over payment issues with a liquor distribution company.
According to the real estate industry on the 3rd, the Seoul Central District Court decided to commence a forced auction in July for Jung Joon-ha's apartment in Jungang Heights Village, Samseong-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul (exclusive area 152.98㎡). The property was acquired in 2005 with Jung Joon-ha and his father each holding half of the shares. The current market price of the apartment exceeds 3.6 billion KRW, and the auction is proceeding only for 36.38㎡ (11 pyeong), which is half of the share Jung Joon-ha owns. The creditor is liquor distribution company A, which reportedly applied for the auction claiming it has not received 203,298,812 KRW from Jung Joon-ha.
However, Jung Joon-ha maintains that he is unfairly treated. According to a report by Ilgan Sports, he explained in an interview the day before, "While running a store and facing financial difficulties due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I received an offer from a liquor company I had dealt with for seven years to borrow money interest-free." He added, "Even though I repaid all the money, company A filed for auction citing delayed damages. I have been in business for a long time, but this is the first time I have experienced something like this, so I am confused and truly feel wronged."
According to Jung Joon-ha's claim, he borrowed 200 million KRW from company A in 2018 when he opened the second branch of his restaurant, promising to repay 5 million KRW monthly for 40 months. Although the repayment schedule was delayed due to COVID-19 and other circumstances, he completed repayment in June. However, company A suddenly applied for the auction, claiming they did not receive delayed damages. Jung Joon-ha stated, "I later found out that the delayed damages were at an annual rate of 24%." The first sale date for the auctioned property is scheduled for the 10th, and Jung Joon-ha's side filed a petition to cancel the auction decision at the Seoul Central District Court on the 29th of last month, along with an urgent request to suspend the forced auction.
Im Young-taek, a lawyer at Law Firm Neulpum representing Jung Joon-ha, told Ilgan Sports, "The transaction between Jung Joon-ha and company A does not make sense logically. Even if the repayment was delayed, the 24% annual delayed damages are legally excessive." He added, "There is suspicion of intentionality, and we are considering not only civil litigation but also future criminal charges."
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