DistantNews
Support us
South Korean CEO arrested on fraud charges
🇰🇷 South Korea /Crime & Justice

South Korean CEO arrested on fraud charges

From Dong-A Ilbo · () Korean

Translated from Korean, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Outcome reported
  • Cha Ga-won, chairman of Piaark Group and CEO of One Hundred, was arrested on charges of fraud involving approximately 30 billion won.
  • He is accused of receiving advance payments for a business proposal using artists' intellectual property but failing to execute the project.
  • The court cited the risk of evidence tampering as grounds for the arrest warrant.

Cha Ga-won, chairman of Piaark Group and CEO of One Hundred, has been arrested on suspicion of fraud amounting to around 30 billion won (approximately $21 million USD). The Seoul Central District Court issued the arrest warrant on August 3, citing a risk of evidence tampering.

The charges stem from an alleged business deal where Cha proposed a venture using the intellectual property of artists affiliated with his company, Big Planet Made Entertainment. He is accused of receiving 24.2 billion won in advance payments from a company called Nomus for this project but subsequently failing to implement the business as promised.

Investigators previously searched the offices of Big Planet Made Entertainment in April and questioned Cha as a suspect in early May. When appearing for the arrest warrant hearing, Cha stated he would answer questions diligently. However, he declined to comment on the reasons for not proceeding with the business or the basis for his claims of innocence regarding the fraud allegations.

I will answer diligently.

— Cha Ga-wonCha's statement to reporters upon arriving for his arrest warrant hearing.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Dong-A Ilbo in Korean. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

More Stories

From Our Blog