Hankook Tire chairman attends court hearing on his arrest warrant

• Published date: 08 March 2023
• Publication title: The Korea Times

The chief of tire giant Hankook Tire Technology attended a court hearing Wednesday on an arrest warrant requested earlier this week for him on charges of illicit inter-affiliate trading, embezzlement and breach of trust.

Hankook Tire Chairman Cho Hyun-bum, appearing for the hearing at the Seoul Central District Court shortly after 3 p.m., remained tight-lipped in the face of reporters' questions.

The 51-year-old Cho is accused of having caused losses to MKT, the predecessor of Hankook Precision Works, by forcing the Hankook Tire affiliate to lend around 13 billion won ($9.84 million) to Hyundai Motor's parts supplier Leehan between 2020 and 2021 despite the borrower's unsound financial conditions.

Cho is suspected of having carried out the lending due to his personal acquaintance with Leehan's chief executive, Park Ji-hoon.

The chairman is also accused of using his company's funds...