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Hundreds of investors file claims in alleged stock manipulation case
July 12, 2008
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| The biggest indemnity lawsuit concerning a stock manipulation case in Korea is looming, and the defendant in the case is a lawmaker. As of yesterday, 939 investors had filed individual indemnity suits worth 44.2 billion won ($44.2 million) against Jeong Kuk-kyo, a proportional lawmaker with the United Democratic Party, and his company H&T, according to Hannuri Law and Hankyul, law firms in charge of the case. A spokeswoman for Hannuri Law said 359 people filed a lawsuit worth 16.1 billion won in total yesterday. It was the second suit filed through Hannuri after 302 people filed a 16.3-billion-won suit on June 10. A spokeswoman for Hankyul said yesterday that 278 people recently filed a suit worth 11.8 billion won. The Hankyul spokeswoman said another suit worth around 3 billion won will be filed by around 100 people Friday. That will lift the total amount of the claim to 47.2 billion won. More investors are likely to join the suit, according to the law firms. Kim Kwang-joong, a Hankyul lawyer in charge of the case, said a third suit is under consideration. “Many investors are showing interest in joining the suit, so we are considering filing another one,” Kim said. Previously, indemnity suits filed in stock manipulation schemes in Korea amounted to less than 10 billion won. Jeong has been indicted on charges that he earned around 50 billion won by inflating share value in an illicit way. Jeong said in regulatory filing in February 2007 that H&T planned to develop a silicon mine in Uzbekistan. The stock price rose more than 2,000 percent from 3,880 won on Feb. 27 2007 to 89,700 won on Oct. 8 2007. The price later plummeted after Jeong sold 400,000 shares in October 2007. It closed at 2,990 won yesterday. By Moon Gwang-lip Staff Reporter [joe@joongang.co.kr] |
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