An employee at a livestock farming cooperative corporation in Gangwon Province has been sentenced to a heavy prison term for embezzling and illegally selling millions of won worth of cooperative-owned Hanwoo (Korean beef) at bargain prices to pocket the proceeds.

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

A was put on trial for embezzling approximately 4.0 billion won worth of Hanwoo across about 1,000 instances 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 frozen warehouse and illegally used a vehicle owned by the cooperative in the process.

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

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

Had the beef been sold normally by the cooperative, it would have amounted to approximately 4.0 billion won.

A, who left the cooperative last March, stated that the crimes were committed to secure living expenses, but investigations revealed that most of the money was spent on illegal gambling funds or cryptocurrency investments.

Ultimately standing trial in custody, A admitted to all charges.

The court explained its sentencing rationale, stating, "The nature of the crime is very grave as the defendant abused an occupational position, restitution of damage has not been made to date, and the defendant has not been forgiven by the victimized corporation. However, the sentence was determined by considering factors such as the defendant admitting to the crimes and showing remorse."

(Photo: Yonhap News)