Prosecutors have frozen the assets of Bae, a former journalist who is the beneficial owner of "Cheonhwa Dongin No. 7," one of the private developers in the Daejang-dong case.
The Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office said in a press notice Friday that it had "executed an asset preservation order against Bae, who is on trial on charges of violating the Act on Regulation and Punishment of Criminal Proceeds Concealment."
An asset preservation order freezes proceeds suspected of having been gained through crime until a guilty verdict is finalized. The frozen assets total 12.1 billion won, including real estate and deposits held under the names of Bae and his family in proxy, and also include assets preserved for forfeiture and collection in the conflict-of-interest violation case in which the Daejang-dong private developers were indicted.
Earlier, when prosecutors indicted Daejang-dong private developers including Kim Man-bae on charges of violating the Act on the Prevention of Conflict of Interest in 2023, they also froze Bae's assets, arguing that he qualified as "a person other than the criminal who acquired corrupt property while aware of the circumstances." However, Bae filed a request with the court to cancel the asset preservation order, claiming the prosecutors' disposition was unjust.
After three years of additional investigation, prosecutors concluded that Bae participated in the Daejang-dong project based on his friendship with Kim Man-bae, a fellow former journalist, and pocketed development profits while aware they were criminal proceeds. They indicted him without detention in March.
Bae was a junior colleague of Kim Man-bae, the major shareholder of Hwacheon Daeyu, at the same media company. While working as a journalist in 2011 and 2012, Bae introduced attorney Nam Wook and accountant Jeong Young-hak to Kim. Prosecutors believe Bae invested 10 million won in the Daejang-dong development project under the name of Cheonhwa Dongin No. 7 and received about 12.13 billion won in dividends.
