Cho Hyun-bum, vice president of Hankook Tire Co., was accused of earning 110 million won (US$80,000) in early 2007 by manipulating the stock prices of Kosdaq-listed ND Corp., an overseas resources developer, on the basis of insider information.
The 36-year-old Cho, husband of President Lee’s third daughter, Soo-yun, was also suspected of participating in the embezzlement of funds from Kosdaq-listed wireless contents provider Codinus last year.
Officials at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office said that they failed to find any signs of illegality in Cho’s investments in ND Corp. and Codinus.
"Cho’s investment in ND Corp. was indirectly carried out by an investment consulting company. Moreover, Cho’s investment was conducted regardless of the timing of the company’s announcement of an energy development project in Kazakhstan," said a prosecutor.
"Cho’s investment of 4 billion won in Codinus also turned out to be purely for investment purposes, rather than being linked to a group of arrested embezzlers," he said.
Kim Young-jip, a grandson of Hankook Chinaware founder Kim Jong-ho, and others were arrested last December on charges of embezzling 36.2 billion won from Codinus through insider information. At that time, the nation’s stock market watchdog also reported Cho and seven others to the prosecution on suspicion of illicit stock deals.
Cho Hyun-bum is the second son of Hankook Tire Chairman Cho Yang-rae, who is a younger brother of Cho Suck-rai, chairman of Hyosung Group and the Federation of Korean Industries. (Tire Review/Akron)
