Hankook CEO arrested on bribery charges

Hankook Tire chief executive Cho Hyun-bum was arrested in Seoul on allegations including bribery and embezzlement on Thursday 21 November 2019, according to local news sources including The Korea Times and Reuters.

Yonhap News Agency reported that prosecutors have charged Cho Hyun-bum with receiving around 500 million won (around US$425,778) in kickbacks and misappropriating funds.

A day before, the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office sought a detention warrant for Cho on charges including dereliction of duty and embezzlement.

The Korea Times reported that the Korean National Tax Service investigated Hankook in July 2018 with reference to alleged tax dodging and handed over its findings to the prosecution in January 2019. According to the newspaper, the prosecution “secured evidence that Cho created a slush fund and took hundreds of millions of won unfairly from suppliers”.

Tyres & Accessories has contacted Hankook representatives but so far there has been no official comment.