Employee Sentenced to Prison for Stealing Hanwoo Worth 4 Billion Won Over 1,000 Times

An employee who worked at an agricultural cooperative in Gangwon Province and stole billions of won worth of cooperative-owned Hanwoo (Korean beef), selling them at dirt-cheap prices and pocketing the proceeds, has been sentenced to a heavy prison term.

Chuncheon District Court Criminal Division 2 (Presiding Judge Kim Sung-rae) sentenced A, in their 30s, to five years in prison on the 10th during the sentencing trial for charges including embezzlement under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment, etc. of Specific Economic Crimes, theft, and unauthorized use of a motor vehicle.

A was put on trial for stealing Hanwoo worth approximately 4 billion won over 1,000 times from June 2021 to February of this year, selling them cheaply to supermarkets and restaurants, and pocketing the proceeds.

A also stole about 9 million won worth of Hanwoo from the cooperative's freezer and illegally used a vehicle owned by the cooperative in the process.

Police investigating the circumstances surrounding the embezzlement uncovered that while in charge of shipping and delivery duties, A secretly smuggled out portioned cuts of packaged meat such as sirloin, tenderloin, and strip loin, and manipulated transaction statements to make it appear as though inventory still remained.

A sold off the Hanwoo at prices 30 to 50 percent lower than market value, pocketing about 2.3 billion won in proceeds.

If sold normally through the cooperative, the amount would have reached approximately 4 billion won.

A, who left the cooperative in March, stated that the crimes were committed to cover living expenses, but investigations revealed that most of the money was spent on illegal gambling funds or invested in cryptocurrencies.

Standing trial in custody, A admitted to all charges.

The court explained the reasoning for the sentencing, stating, "The nature of the crime is very grave as it was committed by exploiting an occupational position, restitution of damage has not been made to date, and forgiveness has not been received from the victimized corporation," adding, "However, the sentence was determined taking into consideration the fact that the defendant admits to the crime and shows remorse."

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.