Actress Hwang Jung-eum, who ”embezzled over 400 million yen from the company,” sheds tears after receiving a suspended sentence in the first trial.

Actress Hwang Jung-eum has been indicted on charges of embezzling 4.2 billion won from her company and received a suspended prison sentence.

On the 25th (today), the Jeju District Court's Second Criminal Division sentenced Hwang Jung-eum, who is suspected of violating the Act on Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes (embezzlement), to two years in prison, suspended for four years.

The court explained the reasons for the sentence, saying, "The defendant's losses were significant, as she used the funds for speculative investments and to purchase expensive personal items. We took into consideration the fact that the victim company was a single-person company, so any losses incurred will be limited to the defendant, and that she has repaid the embezzled amount in full, and that this is her first offense."

After receiving her suspended prison sentence, Hwang Jung-eum shed tears in front of reporters as she left the courtroom. She explained, "I'm sorry for causing concern. I've never even been near a police station before, so I cried when I heard the verdict."

Previously, in 2022, Hwang Jung-eum received 700 million won of a planning company's loan in the company's name and invested it in cryptocurrency. She suffered a loss and was accused of embezzlement.

Hwang Jung-eum revealed that it was a one-person entertainment agency with no other entertainers under its management, and sold off her assets to repay the full amount. "I've founded and run an entertainment agency before, but it was a company in which I held 100% of the shares," she said at her first trial. "Although the funds were in the company's name, I made an immature decision because I thought they were revenue earned from my activities."

Recently, Hwang Jung-eum's agency, Y1 Entertainment, said, "Hwang Jung-eum repaid the entire amount received from her former agency in the form of an interim payment in two installments on May 30th and June 5th of this year by disposing of her personal assets. The fact that she lacked the appropriate tax and accounting knowledge as a shareholder in a corporation and not a professional manager caused controversy. We are faithfully taking all necessary legal and moral measures to resolve this case as soon as possible."