[Anchor]

Distributors and officials accused of colluding on the prices of pork supplied to major supermarkets have been handed over to trial. Their collusion reportedly caused pork prices to soar by more than 20 percent, resulting in significant consumer harm. It was also revealed that they systematically concealed evidence of their crimes when authorities began investigating.

Reporter An Huijae has the details.

[Reporter]

The Seoul Eastern District Prosecutors' Office announced that it is bringing six major pork distribution companies to trial on charges of violating the Fair Trade Act.

Twelve executives and employees were also indicted.

According to prosecutors, these companies sold 1.2 trillion won worth of pork to E-Mart over a six-year period starting in 2017, and price-fixing took place during this process.

The prosecution's investigation revealed that they agreed on fluctuations in the estimated prices of meat supplied to E-Mart and frequently shared information with one another.

In particular, they continued their collective collusion starting in 2021 through secret Telegram group chat rooms that are difficult to track. When the Fair Trade Commission launched an on-site investigation in 2023, it was confirmed that they acted systematically—deleting messenger chat histories and various materials containing related circumstances, and even having corporate compliance officers direct the deletion of relevant data.

[Lee Jung-ho / Chief of the 6th Criminal Division, Seoul Eastern District Prosecutors' Office: There were acts obstructing the investigation such as deleting related evidence at a significant number of companies, and compliance management personnel even participated, systematically concealing the crimes....]

The prosecution, which launched a formal investigation in April following a complaint by the Fair Trade Commission, emphasized that it uncovered the 1.2 trillion-won collusion crime in just three months.

The prosecution explained that while the consumer price index for pork and wholesale prices rose following the detection of the collusion, supermarket pork belly prices actually fell. They noted that these crimes, which have settled into a chronic practice, caused the retail prices of pork at E-Mart to rise by at least 20 percent or more, having a serious adverse impact on price stability.

The prosecution emphasized that it will respond sternly to fair trade offenses, including collusion that causes severe damage to the livelihoods of ordinary citizens.

(Camera Cooperation: Joo Yong-jin | Video Editing: Choi Hye-ran)