Easter Jet Airline based in Gangseo-gu, Seoul, has seen one of its senior financial officials indicted for embezzlement this week. The identity of the accused official has not been revealed by the prosecution. However, he is known to be a relative of Eastar Jet’s founder Lee Sang Jik. He was charged with misappropriation of funds and breach of trust. In 2015 the person allegedly undersold KRW48bn worth of company shares at KRW10bn “company shares that are owned by the company’s affiliates of particular subsidiaries”. The prosecutor’s office in Jeonju stated that this “greatly damaged the airline”. Furthermore, the “high official” was also accused of using KRW3.8bn of subsidiaries’ funds arbitrarily between the years 2015 and 2019. The results of this initial investigation prompted the authorities to further widen the probe because it is possible that the person in question also conspired with the company management at the time. Easter Jet is currently trying to move into receivership and the application is with the courts, the application says that the airline is considering a merger or acquisition “The Seoul bankruptcy court plans to find a way for the debtor to continue to utilize its expertise and know-how related to the domestic and international air transport industry through M&A,” the statement from the court reads. The outlook for the brand is not good at this time.
Easter Jet manager in embezzlement case
