Nexon founder summoned over senior prosecutor’s stock purchase scandal

SEOUL, July 13 (Yonhap) — Prosecutors summoned the founder of South Korea’s leading online game maker Nexon Co. on Wednesday over his alleged involvement in a senior prosecutor’s suspicious stock transactions.

Kim Jung-ju, the incumbent chairman of Nexon’s holding firm NXC Corp., appeared before the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office to face questioning on Jin Kyung-joon.

“I will tell everything that I know to the prosecution,” Kim told reporters before entering the prosecutors’ office, adding he is sorry for causing concern.

The case involving Jin came to light early this year as the senior prosecutor reported a whopping increase in his personal wealth in 2015. All ranking government officials and lawmakers are required to disclose changes in their personal wealth annually.

Nexon allegedly lent some 400 million won (US$348,000) to Jin in 2005, helping the senior prosecutor amass some 12 billion won in profit through stock transactions by 2015.

Prosecutors said they will grill Kim, 48, over whether he helped Jin in return for favors.

They are also looking into alleged irregularities committed by Nexon.

Just one day before the questioning, prosecutors raided Kim’s home and offices, as well as the house of the 49-year-old prosecutor.

Prosecutors also said that they will summon Jin on Thursday to look into an allegation that he took bribes from Nexon’s chairman by using the borrowed money to buy non-listed Nexon shares.

Last week, the country’s top prosecutor Kim Soo-nam designated Lee Keum-ro, chief of the Incheon District Prosecutors’ Office, to head an independent team and thoroughly investigate the case.

The special team can investigate without supervision, having only to report its results to the prosecutor general.

Jin offered to quit in April when the allegations arose, but the justice ministry has not accepted the resignation.

Kim Jung-ju, founder of South Korea’s leading online game maker Nexon Co., enters the Seoul Central Distirct Prosecutors’ Office on July 13, 2016, to face questioning over his involvement in a senior prosecutor’s suspicious stock transactions. (Yonhap)