Prosecution seeks arrest warrant for Orion chairman

SEOUL, May 25 (Yonhap) -- Prosecutors sought an arrest warrant for the chairman of Orion Group Wednesday on charges of ordering executives of the confectionery and media group to create slush funds and pocketing the money.
Tam Cheol-gon, a son-in-law of the late Orion founder Lee Yang-ho, was accused of creating a total of some 10 billion won (US$9.2 million) in slush funds and exploiting the money for personal purposes, according to prosecutors from the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office.
Investigators said Tam's close confidant, surnamed Cho, raised the fund in the process of selling land owned by the group for constructing a luxury apartment in southern Seoul at a below-market price and falsifying a payroll report. Cho, who has already been arrested and indicted on charges of embezzlement, delivered the money to Tam and his wife, Lee Hwa-kyung, who is also a top executive of the group, they said.
Tam is also charged with incurring a loss to one of his group's affiliates by having the company lease luxury sports cars and using them for personal purposes, the investigators said.
Prosecutors suspect Tam used part of the corporate funds to buy about 10 expensive paintings found at his home, which prosecutors raided on May 16.
However, Tam pleaded not guilty to most of the charges, they added.


brk@yna.co.kr