Key officials at Iron Mace, who were suspected of leaking unpublished project data from Nexon to develop the game Dark and Darker, have been referred to prosecutors.
On the 16th, the Southern Gyeonggi Provincial Police Agency's Industrial Technology Security Investigation Team announced that they had referred three key officials of Iron Mace, including an individual named Choi, who are facing allegations of violating the Unfair Competition Prevention and Trade Secret Protection Act and breach of trust, to the Suwon District Prosecutor's Office in Seongnam. Choi is accused of leaking data related to the unreleased game project P3 that was under development during his employment at Nexon. Nexon claims that after leaving the company, Choi established Iron Mace and developed Dark and Darker based on the leaked data, leading them to file a complaint with the police in August 2021.
The police noted that Choi and another official, identified as A, admitted to leaking development data from Nexon and were referred on charges of trade secret leakage under the Unfair Competition Prevention Act and breach of trust. Additionally, copyright law violation charges were also added against Iron Mace as a corporation and another official, identified as B.
However, the police made a non-referral decision due to insufficient evidence regarding whether the leaked data from project P3 was actually used in the development of Dark and Darker.
Iron Mace countered the allegations by stating in a press release on the same day, 'Nexon's claims are false, and this was proven during the police investigation.' They also noted, 'We will reveal the truth during the trial process and stand against the unfair practices of major corporations that hinder fair competition.'
In relation to the police's non-referral decision, Nexon stated that they 'plan to file an objection.' Both parties are currently engaged in a civil lawsuit regarding Dark and Darker at the Seoul Central District Court.
The 63rd Civil Agreement Division of the Seoul Central District Court is set to hold a hearing on the 17th, and witness examinations for the witnesses requested by both parties will be conducted.