A branch manager at a Saemaul Geumgo community credit cooperative in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, embezzled tens of millions of won in cash and then tried to cover up the crime by filling the vault with fake bills, it was belatedly revealed.
According to News1 and the Gyeongju Police Station on Tuesday, 70 million won in cash was withdrawn without authorization from a Saemaul Geumgo branch in Gyeongju last January. An investigation found that the crime was committed by the branch manager, identified as A, who was responsible for managing the branch. After siphoning money from the vault, A filled it with fake 50,000-won bills purchased online to conceal the crime.
The toy bills were easy to identify with the naked eye, but A evaded suspicion by exploiting the lax monitoring at the small branch, where only two people — the branch manager and a section chief — worked.
A was eventually caught after a colleague who noticed something unusual reported it. However, the Saemaul Geumgo side reportedly delayed reporting the case to police even after becoming aware of it. As a result, A underwent police investigation in the form of voluntary surrender only after 15 days had passed since the incident, and recently received a summary indictment from the court. A summary indictment is a procedure in which prosecutors request the court to impose a fine through document review only, without a formal trial, for minor offenses.
In connection with this, a Saemaul Geumgo official said, "We immediately dismissed A after recognizing the case. The damage amount was also fully repaid, so it is a matter that has been internally closed."
