Seoul Prosecutors Indict 9 in Alleged KOSDAQ Share-Price Manipulation Case

The Seoul Southern District Prosecutors Office on Friday announced a crackdown on a group of ten people suspected of share-price manipulation; three were arrested and indicted, six were summarily indicted without detention, and one remains wanted. Six accomplices were summarily indicted without detention while one remaining suspect is wanted, Yonhap reported.

4 billion won, equivalent to US$960,000, in illegal profits.

The perpetrators manipulated the stock price of a KOSDAQ-listed company between December 2024 and April 2025. 9 billion won during the period through borrowed-name accounts. Key figures among the ringleaders included a corporate raiding expert who claims to be one of the protagonists of the 2009 movie "Operation," a securities firm executive, a wealthy man known to be the husband of an influencer and a former football player.

They reportedly assigned specific roles to execute the scheme, including raising funds, opening nominee accounts and securing burner phones. The group spread false positive news to manipulate stock prices after putting those elements in place. Yonhap reported the investigation was launched following a leniency application submitted to the Supreme Prosecutors Office by a self-reporter.

The Seoul Southern District Prosecutors Office detailed how the ring operated across four months in late 2024 and early 2025. 9 billion won, underscored the coordinated nature of the effort. One ringleader's background as a corporate raiding expert stood out among the group.

Another brought experience from inside a securities firm while a third was identified publicly as the husband of an influencer. The fourth had previously played professional football. The self-reporter's leniency application provided the initial breakthrough for authorities.

That step prompted the broader probe by the Supreme Prosecutors Office before the case moved to the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors Office for arrests and indictments. All three arrested ringleaders face formal indictment on Capital Market Act violations.

The six summarily indicted accomplices will face charges without being held in custody while investigators continue to pursue the final suspect.