Park Chan-koo, chairman of Kumho Petrochemical Co., was sentenced to three years in prison, suspending the sentence for five years, on charges of embezzlement, according to the Korea Times.
Originally a lower court gave Chan-koo a lesser sentence, but the Seoul High Court overturned the “not guilty” verdicts on two counts of embezzlement charges. The appeals court also ruled him guilty on the breach of trust regarding $9 million, according to the report.
Chan-koo was indicted in 2009 on charges of embezzlement through the sale of company stocks based on information that had not been made public to the market. He was also indicted for allegedly misappropriating 10.7 billion-won by illegally lending it to his son.
Chan-koo is the younger brother of Park Sam-koo, Kumho Asiana Group’s chairman.
Sam-koo and Chan-koo has long been embattled with each other. In 2009 Sam-koo held a board meeting where he fired his brother and then resigned from a management position.
On Sept. 3, Chan-koo filed a complaint accusing his older brother of breach of trust and embezzlement. Chan-koo also accused two others of breach of duty. The charges are currently under investigation.
The Kumho Asiana Group told Yonhap News in late September the charges against Sam-koo are not true.
The Kumho Asiana Group is the parent company of Kumho Tire. Sam-koo owns a 2.8% stake in the tiremaker.
