Tax Raids Rattle Overseas Funds Tread Carefully with This Tax Probe Foreign Businesses Outraged by Tax Probe Lone Star Among Five Funds to Face Hefty Tax Bill First Foreign Fund in Korea Slapped With Criminal Fine Treat All Capital the Same Time Running Out for Lone Star Lone Star in Fresh Criminal Probe Over KEB Buyout Singapore Dark Horse Enters KEB Bidding An Expensive Lesson from Lone Star Kookmin Bank Gets Nod to Take Over KEB Kookmin Bank to Buy KEB at Whopping Price Lone Star Raided in KEB Takeover Probe

Acting on a complaint from the National Tax Service (NTS), the Supreme Public Prosecutors’ Office referred the case to Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office. The accused include Steven Lee, the former head of Lone Star Korea, three other executives, and 16 Korean affiliates of the fund. They are suspected of evading taxes by deliberately under-reporting transactions and illegally transferring money abroad. The NTS conducted a six-month investigation of the U.S fund and slapped it with W70 billion (about US$70 million) in punitive taxes.

Prosecutors say they will take appropriate action including a travel ban for suspects after reviewing the evidence. It will not be an easy ride since Lee flew the coop in May. A prosecutor said the crux of the investigation was to decide whether Lone Star can be punished under Korean law for tax evasion by nominally basing itself in an overseas tax haven.

(englishnews@chosun.com )