'Coin Listing Bribery' Pro Golfer An Seong-hyun Sentenced to 4 Years and 6 Months in First Trial... Court Imprisonment

Professional golfer Ahn Seong-hyun (43), who was indicted on charges of receiving tens of billions of won in bribes in exchange for listing virtual assets (coins), was sentenced to prison and detained in court in the first trial. Ahn is the husband of singer Sung Yu-ri.

Professional golfer Ahn Seong-hyun, who is accused of accepting money and valuables from a coin issuing company under the pretext of helping with listing (fraud and breach of trust under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes). Photo by Yonhap News

On the 26th, the 11th Criminal Division of the Seoul Southern District Court (Chief Judge Jeong Do-seong) sentenced Ahn, who was tried on charges of breach of trust, violation of the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes (fraud), to 4 years and 6 months in prison. The court also ordered the confiscation of two luxury watches worth a total of about 400 million won. The court stated, "The nature of the crime is very serious," and added, "Nevertheless, there was no sign of remorse during the trial process, and the damage has not been compensated."

Ahn is accused of receiving 3 billion won in cash, two luxury watches worth a total of 400 million won, and a membership card for a high-end restaurant from businessman Kang Jong-hyun (43) between September and November 2021, along with a request to list a specific coin on an exchange. He is also accused of embezzling 2 billion won received from Kang during the request process. Previously, the prosecution requested a sentence of 7 years in prison, a fine of 2 billion won, a confiscation of 1.5 billion won, and the seizure of two luxury watches for Ahn.

However, immediately after the sentencing, Ahn was given the opportunity to speak and expressed his intention to appeal, saying, "I may have done something that could be misunderstood, but I did not commit fraud or receive money in exchange for listing coins, so I feel wronged."

Lee Sang-jun, former CEO of Bithumb Holdings (55), who was also tried on charges of breach of trust, was sentenced to 2 years in prison and ordered to pay about 50 million won in fines. Lee is a former team leader of the Capital Market Investigation Division at the Financial Supervisory Service. He also denied the charges immediately after sentencing, stating, "I never received any improper requests."

Kang, the victim of fraud in this case and the person who made the request, was sentenced to 1 year and 6 months in prison. Song Mo (39), a representative of the coin issuing company, was acquitted.