A South Korean skilled has claimed that public curiosity in crypto is likely one of the elements contributing to a rising variety of embezzlement instances.
Per Herald Kyungaje, lately launched prosecution service information exhibits that legal instances associated to “embezzlement and breach of belief” within the nation rose 29% year-on-year in 2023.
South Korean Embezzlement Circumstances: ‘Staff Tempted to Purchase Crypto and Shares’
In complete, the service handled 3,966 instances in 2023, with information for 2024 not but publicly out there.
The media outlet famous that this determine excludes “easy embezzlement instances” pertaining to “misplaced property.”
It additionally excludes instances which might be settled out of court docket. As such, the newspaper wrote, “the variety of embezzlement and breach of belief instances really occurring in corporations is probably going even increased.”
The identical media outlet spoke to Park Ki-tae, an adjunct professor at Dongguk College and a health care provider of criminology.
Park, additionally a former director of the Nationwide Police Company’s Audit Workplace and now the CEO of an embezzlement detection software program agency, mentioned that many home corporations have “weak embezzlement prevention programs.” The skilled mentioned:
“Financial uncertainty has persevered after the coronavirus pandemic. And extra staff have been tempted into making speculative investments in shares, playing, and cryptocurrencies.”
The skilled additionally claimed that “embezzlement strategies” have gotten “extra numerous and complicated” as “the variety of non-face-to-face digital monetary transactions will increase.”
South Korea’s Constitutional Court docket will maintain one other listening to subsequent week earlier than deciding whether or not President Yoon Suk Yeol needs to be completely faraway from workplace for his ill-fated martial legislation declaration in December https://t.co/ADEQSV3zbu
— Bloomberg (@enterprise) February 13, 2025
Case Numbers Rising Quick
The information outlet added that the figures present that prosecutors are actually coping with “a mean of about 11 instances of embezzlement and breach of belief per day.”
That’s the tough equal of 1 case “each two hours,” the outlet wrote. It added that South Korea was experiencing a “golden period of embezzlement.”
The information additionally exhibits that 216 residents have been arrested for embezzlement and breach of belief instances violations final 12 months.
It additionally exhibits that embezzlement and breach of belief instances involving quantities over 500 million received ($344,260) rose “by about 40% year-on-year to 612 instances.”
Seoul shares rise to 3-month excessive amid tariff exemption hope#Kospi #Kosdaq #shares #updateshttps://t.co/0se75HWPJg
— The Korea Herald 코리아헤럴드 (@TheKoreaHerald) February 13, 2025
Greater Rises in 2024?
Information stories from 2024 recommend subsequent 12 months’s information may level to additional rises, in addition to yet-closer connections to crypto.
In December, a court docket sentenced a financial institution worker who stole cash from his employer to purchase crypto to fifteen years in jail.
Earlier, the nation was shocked by stories {that a} civil servant stole $2.8 million price of public medical health insurance funds.
The civil servant then transformed the cash to crypto and fled the nation. He was later arrested on embezzlement costs within the Philippines, the place he had been residing in a high-end resort.
Earlier this month, prosecutors indicted a serving legal professional on embezzlement and fraud costs. Officers suspect the lawyer and 5 others of working a $7.9 million “rip-off coin” gross sales platform.
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