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The prosecutors said Monday that Lee Kun-hee, the owner of the Samsung group, the largest business group in the country, is suspected of breaking laws related to inheritance, as executives of a Samsung affiliate handed over the managerial rights to the group to his son, Jae-yong, by issuing convertible bonds (CBs) in Samsung Everland, a theme-park run by the group.
The Seoul District Public Prosecutor's Office indicted that day two former executives of Samsung Everland, including Heo Tae-hak, the president of the unit at the time of the bond issuance, on charges of misappropriation, which under tough new regulations on white-collar crime would bring harsh punishment. In addition, the move automatically extends the statute of limitations for the case, which was to end this month, for another 10 years.
The two former executives were not arrested, however.
The prosecutors said that the former Samsung Everland executives had caused the firm W97 billion in losses by selling the CBs for W7,700 a unit to Jae-yong and to his sister. The executives had originally issued the W9.9 billion in CBs in November 1996, but bcause W9.6 billion of them became forfeited, the executives sold the forfeited CBs to the two children of the group owner.
Prosecutors said that the CB sale price of W7,700 was found to have been far beneath the market price, as other Samsung units assessed the per-share value of Samsung Everland at W89,000 to W230,000, and the market share prices at that time was W85,000 a share.
(chosun.com, internetnews@chosun.com )
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