Daewoo Former And Incumbent Presidents Sentenced for 6 Year with a Record Fines of 26 Trillion Won

Former and incumbent officers and staffs of Daewoo subsidiaries, who were indicted for illegal window dressing settlement and fraudulent loans of trillions of wons, were sentenced heavy penalties, including a record fines ever.

The court 21 of Metropolitan Seoul area (Head Judge: Chang, Haechang) sentenced Kang, Byungho, former Daewoo and Daewoo motors president, Chang, Byungjoo, former Daewoo president, Kim, Taeku, former Daewoo motors president, and Chun, Joobum, Daewoo shipbuilding president (former Daewoo Heavy Industries president) to 7, 6, 4 and 3 years imprisonments respectively.

The court also sentenced Shin, Youngkyun, Daewoo shipbuilding president (former Daewoo Heavy Industries president) and Choo, Hoseok, who were not indicted without imprisonment, to 3.5 and 4 years imprisonments respectively. However, the court did not handcuff them to assure their defense opportunities in the appellate courts, considering the manufacturers’ circumstances.

It also pledged 3 people, including Lee, Dongwon, former Daewoo representative to British trade, to be guilty of the charge to have made an illegal transactions to divert the company’s assets to foreign countries, fined them 20.7 trillion won. The total amount of the fines imposed on the former and incumbent officers and staffs reached 26.4 trillion won. Daewoo, Daewoo Heavy Industries, Daewoo Motors, Daewoo Electronics were fined 20 million won respectively.

13 people, including Yang, Jaeyeol, former Daewoo Electronics president, were sentenced 1 -3 years imprisonment or 2-5 years grace period respectively.

The court ruled, “All the charges against the plaintiffs, including fraudulent loans, were found to be guilty. They are responsible for the enormous damage to the national economy and huge government funds which influenced general people to lose their investments. Thus, such actions should be solemnly punished.``

In addition, the court said, ``Despite the directions from Chairman Kim, Woojung, the plaintiffs, top managers, helped him make irresponsible loans to keep their positions, forgetting the original responsibilities of the company and causing general people to suffer financially. Such actions should be condemned.``

The Daewoo staff members were indicted for 40 trillion won window dressing settlements and 10 trillion illegal fraudulent transactions last February. Last April, Yoo, Kiebym, former Daewoo Communications, was sentenced 4 years imprisonment.

Lee Jung-Eun lightee@donga.com