Former Sambu Engineering & Construction Vice Chairman Lee Gi-hoon, who was indicted and detained on charges of reaping illicit gains worth tens of billions of won after inflating the stock price with false and exaggerated promotions related to Ukraine reconstruction projects, has applied for bail with the court.
According to legal sources on the 24th, Lee applied for bail on the 22nd to the Seoul Central District Court's Criminal Agreement Division 32 (Presiding Judge Ryu Kyung-jin, senior judge). Lee is on trial as the key figure in the suspected stock manipulation involving Sambu Engineering & Construction.
Prosecutors believe that in May 2023, taking the Ukraine reconstruction forum held in Poland as an opportunity, Sambu Engineering & Construction ramped up external publicity as if it had signed various memorandums of understanding (MOUs) to boost the stock price, and then disposed of its holdings to gain unjust profits of about 36.9 billion won.
Lee is also accused of distributing false and exaggerated press releases from May to October of the same year to mislead investors into thinking that Well Biotec, an affiliate of Sambu Engineering & Construction, was participating in Ukraine reconstruction projects. Prosecutors suspect that during this process, Well Biotec Chairman Yang Nam-hee and Lee sold shares at high prices and pocketed about 21.5 billion won in gains.
Lee fled without appearing for a warrant hearing in the Sambu Engineering & Construction case in July last year and was arrested in Mokpo, South Jeolla, after 55 days. The court later issued an additional arrest warrant for Lee on the 18th of last month, finding a risk of evidence destruction and flight in connection with the suspected stock manipulation involving Well Biotec.