Lee Seung-gi hits back at '10.5 billion won jeonse fraud victim' issue: "Demons are lurking, my head is in a mess" [Star Issue]

*This content was translated by AI.View Original

Singer and actor Lee Seung-gi directly shared his thoughts on the situation of being involved in a dispute over the return of a 10.5 billion won jeonse (deposit-based lease) guarantee.

On the 14th, Lee Seung-gi released a video titled "Hey, wait a moment" through his YouTube channel 'Lee Seung-gi2,' discussing real estate as a topic.

In the video, Lee Seung-gi said, "Isn't real estate people's ultimate goal?" and added, "Since everyone's aspirations are concentrated here, demons are lurking. You have to filter this well. You don't know until you experience it. I've been thinking a lot and studying intensely."

He continued, "I have so much I want to say that my head is in a mess," and stated, "In our society, many people suffer from jeonse fraud and other issues where they cannot get their deposits back. By experiencing this directly this time, I realized there are many things to check among the matters I had trusted."

Lee Seung-gi said, "The biggest issue in jeonse fraud is distinguishing between fraud and simple breach of debt, which separates criminal from civil cases," and added, "The starting point is the behavior and intent at the time of receiving the money. This is the most important part, but it is difficult to prove."

He further stated, "The country has also recognized the problem, and the Housing Lease Protection Act has been amended. 'There are many mechanisms, so if used well, the possibility of prevention increases. If you just trust the broker's words, you lose the weapons to defend yourself when risks arise.'" He emphasized, "I become deeply immersed. When looking at jeonse properties, the condition of the house is important, but even more important is whether you can be safely guaranteed from moving in until moving out."

Lee Seung-gi became involved in a 10.5 billion won jeonse deposit dispute with Cha Ga-won, Chairman of Peak Group and CEO of One Hundred Label, last August. Unable to receive the return of the jeonse deposit, he announced that he would maintain possession instead of moving out and would take criminal action.

Lawyer Yoon Yong-seok of Law Office Hyunmyeong, who is handling Lee Seung-gi's legal representation, told StarNews, "Lee Seung-gi's jeonse contract at his current residence expired as of today, but he has not received the jeonse deposit (from Chairman Cha Ga-won)." He added, "He will continue to occupy this place without moving out, and there is no legal problem with that either." He further stated, "We are also planning to file a complaint related to this, but the timing of submission is undetermined."

In 2024, Lee Seung-gi entered into a jeonse contract for a villa in Hannam-dong, Yongsan-gu, Seoul, owned by Cha Ga-won and his wife, for 10.5 billion won. Subsequently, Lee Seung-gi's side claimed that Cha Ga-won's side demanded a jeonse amount higher than the market price, while Cha Ga-won's side countered that Lee Seung-gi requested a jeonse contract instead of an exclusive agency fee to avoid the tax burden as a multi-home owner.

At the time, Lee Seung-gi's side stated, "We received a promise from CEO Cha Ga-won and his husband to return the (jeonse deposit) in accordance with the contract expiration date or move-out date. If they break this promise again, we will take strong civil and criminal legal measures as deemed necessary."

Currently, CEO Cha Ga-won is detained on suspicion of fraud involving 30 billion won. CEO Cha Ga-won is suspected of proposing a business using the intellectual property (IP) of an entertainer affiliated with his company to Knowmerce Inc., signing a contract, and receiving 24.2 billion won in advance payment, but failing to properly carry out the promised business. The scale of the damage is known to be approximately 30 billion won.

In response, CEO Cha Ga-won's side is completely denying the charges, stating that they were raised during a hostile mergers and acquisitions (M&A) process.

Even more so, CEO Cha Ga-won is also suspected of proposing to acquaintances to sign jeonse contracts in their own names for houses, receiving approximately 5.4 billion won in deposits, and failing to fulfill the contracts. Amid this, the expiration date of the jeonse contract for the villa where Lee Seung-gi was residing approached, and ultimately, Lee Seung-gi, who did not receive his jeonse deposit back, announced that he would take legal action.

If the jeonse deposit is not returned, it cannot be ruled out that the situation will expand into civil and criminal lawsuits surrounding it. In addition, as Cha Ga-won's side counters that "this villa was not a general jeonse contract but had the nature of in-kind payment related to an exclusive agency contract," disputes over legal interpretation regarding the contract may also grow.

In this regard, on this day, Lawyers Yoon Yong-seok and Jang Jae-won of Law Office Hyunmyeong stated through an official position, "We judge that CEO Cha Ga-won's failure to return the jeonse deposit is not simply a problem of being unable to return the deposit, but constitutes jeonse fraud where he received it despite having no intention or ability to return it."

They further claimed, "This case goes beyond the general form where a landlord cannot return the jeonse deposit. It appears that a high-level fraud scheme was strategically employed in which a famous entertainer was induced to take out a large loan to sign a high-value jeonse contract, and then that jeonse deposit was defrauded."

Lee Seung-gi's side emphasized that there are circumstances suggesting Cha Ga-won's side had the execution of a jeonse loan in Lee Seung-gi's name in mind even before signing the jeonse contract. They stated, "The property in question had a sale transaction of over 7 billion won proposed in the past but was terminated. Subsequently, Cha Ga-won's side conducted an appraisal to sign a jeonse contract for an amount higher than the original sale price while concealing this. In this process, they structured the contract to allow for a jeonse loan of approximately 7.3 billion won before signing with Lee Seung-gi."

They also stated, "The Cha Ga-won couple received ownership of the property from a trust company immediately after receiving the jeonse deposit," and added, "It appears they planned a fraudulent act where they used the high-value jeonse loan that a famous entertainer could receive to secure funds for acquiring the real estate, and then did not return it upon contract termination."

Along with this, Lee Seung-gi's side raised the possibility that multiple figures, including Cha Ga-won, his spouse, a real estate broker, and personnel related to loans and appraisals, may have been involved by dividing roles. Lee Seung-gi's side claimed, "CEO Cha Ga-won's legal representatives stated until recently in court and to the artist's side that 'there is no problem with returning the jeonse deposit,' but on the contract expiration date, his spouse said it was difficult to return due to CEO Cha Ga-won's absence." They added, "We trusted this and prepared to move out, but the related costs also remain as a loss."

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*This content was translated by AI.View Original