An employee of OB Beer has been indicted on charges of evading hundreds of millions of won in tariffs while importing malt, the main ingredient in beer.
On June 11, the Tax Crime Investigation Department of the Seoul Northern District Prosecutors' Office (Chief Prosecutor: Ahn Gwanghyun) announced that it had indicted and detained OB Beer employee Jung on charges of violating the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes (customs duties) at the end of last month. Jung was reportedly responsible for purchasing-related tasks at OB Beer.
More than 90% of malt is imported as a raw material, and liquor companies receive a 30% tax benefit on quotas pre-approved by the government. For quantities beyond these quotas, a tariff rate of up to 269% applies. The Korea Customs Service reportedly determined that OB Beer had evaded tariffs by purchasing quotas allocated to other importers.
The prosecution, following a complaint from the Korea Customs Service, conducted a search and seizure at OB Beer's headquarters in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, on March 13 to investigate the alleged tariff evasion.
OB Beer is the leading beer company in South Korea, and its entire stake is owned by AB InBev, a global beverage company headquartered in Belgium.
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