She embezzled billions.
Koreaboo
Kwon Jin Young, CEO of Hook Entertainment, who was indicted for embezzling billions of won of company funds for personal use, was sentenced to a suspended prison term in the first trial.
On the 3rd, the 12th Criminal Division of the Seoul Southern District Court (Presiding Judge Park Jong Yeol) sentenced Kwon to 2 years in prison, suspended for 4 years, on charges including embezzlement and breach of trust under the Act on Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes.
The court stated, “Exercising control over a company to arbitrarily appropriate its assets is socially unacceptable and cannot be considered a minor offense,” adding, “Even a single-person company can cause unforeseen harm to others involved with the company, so stricter management is necessary.”
However, the court also noted, “The defendant admitted to the charges, and all damages have been fully compensated through repayment or deposit.”
Kwon was indicted last October on charges of using about ₩4.00 billion KRW (about $2.65 million USD) of Hook Entertainment’s funds between 2012 and 2022 for personal purposes such as purchasing furniture and paying insurance premiums.
She is also on trial for illegally obtaining prescription sleeping pills through an employee and has been involved in disputes over settlement payments with singer and actor Lee Seung Gi, who was with Hook Entertainment for 18 years.