[Breaking News] Bang Si-hyeok not arrested.. Prosecution rejects arrest warrant, requests supplementary investigation

*This content was translated by AI.

An arrest warrant for Bang Si-hyeok, chairman of HYBE, who is suspected of deceiving investors to secure illegal profits of around 190 billion won, has been rejected.

On the 24th, the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors' Office Financial and Securities Crime Joint Investigation Division returned the arrest warrant for Chairman Bang, who is suspected of fraudulent trading under the Capital Markets Act, to the police and requested a supplementary investigation.

This is because there was insufficient justification for the necessity of arrest. The Prosecution Service explained, "We determined that there was insufficient justification for the necessity of arrest at this stage and requested a supplementary investigation." Previously, the Seoul National Police Agency's Financial Crime Investigation Division applied for an arrest warrant for Chairman Bang on the 21st.

Chairman Bang Si-hyeok is suspected of deceiving existing investors before HYBE's listing in 2019 by claiming there were no initial public offering (IPO) plans, and having them sell their shares to a special purpose corporation (SPC) established by a private equity fund (PEF) created by HYBE executives.

Police suspect that Chairman Bang Si-hyeok received 30% of the sales proceeds after the listing, according to a non-disclosure agreement previously reached with the private equity fund side, thereby earning illegal profits of approximately 190 billion won.

During the investigation conducted over approximately one year and five months, police summoned Chairman Bang five times between September and November last year for questioning. In June last year, police raided the Korea Exchange to secure materials related to the listing review, and in July of the same year, they raided HYBE's headquarters in Yongsan-gu, Seoul.

HYBE denies all allegations, stating, "At the time in question, an IPO was not the top priority, and whether to list had not been decided."

Recently, controversy arose when the U.S. Embassy in Korea sent a letter to the National Police Agency requesting cooperation with Chairman Bang's visit to the United States. The letter reportedly included the need to attend the 250th anniversary celebration of U.S. independence and support for BTS's U.S. tour. Chairman Bang has been under a travel ban since October last year.

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*This content was translated by AI.