A complaint has been filed alleging that comedian Lee Hyuk-jae borrowed a large sum from a company representative while serving as an unpaid special advisor to Incheon and did not repay it, prompting a police investigation.
On the 26th, the Yeonsu Police Station in Incheon said a complaint was filed in July stating that Lee borrowed a total of 300 million won in 2023 and has not repaid it to date. The police have booked Lee on suspicion of fraud and recently completed questioning him as a suspect.
The complainant is a certain asset management firm, and the firm claims that Lee borrowed money saying he would give development project rights for projects to be promoted in the Incheon area while he served as Incheon's unpaid special advisor for media content. The funds were delivered in two installments — 150 million won on Aug. 30, 2023, and 150 million won on Nov. 24 of the same year — totaling 300 million won.
Lee served as Incheon special advisor for media content for about one year from Oct. 2022 to Oct. 2023, and the position was an unpaid honorary post. Lee reportedly admitted borrowing the money but denied the charges, saying he never promised project rights using his title.
The police are examining whether there was an actual fraudulent act based on the complaint and related materials.
Meanwhile, Lee has been involved in several legal disputes over financial issues in the past. In 2014 he was fined for running an entertainment planning company and failing to pay staff wages and severance pay; in 2015 he was sued for not repaying 200 million won borrowed from an acquaintance for a performance, but the complaint was withdrawn. In 2017 he lost a loan repayment lawsuit after failing to repay about 240 million won borrowed from his former agency.
[Photo] OSEN DB
[OSEN]