Considering Confiscation and Preservation of Seized Cash for Forfeiture
The police are investigating the possibility that the theft of 6.8 billion won in cash from an unmanned storage facility near Jamsil Station in Songpa-gu, Seoul, may involve the concealment of criminal proceeds, rather than being a simple theft case.
The Songpa Police Station announced on the 18th that they have booked a man in his 30s, identified as Mr. A, the owner of the cash, on suspicion of violating the Act on Regulation and Punishment of Concealment of Criminal Proceeds, and are currently investigating him.
Previously, in September last year, the police arrested a man in his 40s, surnamed Shim, an employee managing the storage facility, as a suspect after Mr. A reported that "6.8 billion won stored in the warehouse had disappeared." Shim was indicted and detained on charges including nighttime burglary, and in April, he was sentenced to four years in prison in the first trial.
However, during the investigation, the police focused on the fact that Mr. A was staying overseas and could not clearly explain the source of the stolen funds. They also found it difficult to accept the reasoning behind keeping tens of billions of won in an unmanned storage facility used for moving and storage, rather than in a bank account.
Mr. A claimed during questioning that "the money was kept as business funds for my self-employed business," but the police have not returned the approximately 3.9 billion won in cash seized from Shim to Mr. A, instead tracing the flow of the funds. It is reported that, in the process, they secured indications that the money may be related to a crime.
In July, the police summoned Mr. A, who had returned to Korea, as a suspect and intensively questioned him about the source of the funds. Depending on the results of the investigation, they are also considering confiscating or preserving the seized cash for forfeiture.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
