Police Hospital Store Employee Sentenced to Imprisonment for Embezzling 140 Million Won Over Two Years

A woman in her 50s, who was in charge of accounting at the Police Hospital store, has been sentenced to imprisonment for embezzling an amount worth 140 million won over a period of more than two years.

According to News1 on the 21st, Presiding Judge Lee Jun-seok of the 8th Criminal Division of the Eastern District Court of Seoul sentenced Ms. Kim, who was indicted for embezzlement, to 8 months in prison on the 30th of last month.

Ms. Kim had been employed at the store and café operated by the Police Hospital’s employee association located in Songpa-gu, Seoul since 2010 until December last year.

Abusing her position as an accountant, Ms. Kim unlawfully withdrew a total of 142.08 million won from the employee association's operating account 27 times over a period of approximately 2 years and 4 months from August 2022 to December 26 of last year. After the initial withdrawal of 5 million won, she continued to embezzle funds, which she reportedly used for personal living expenses.

The Discovery of Embezzlement and the Court’s Ruling

The Police Hospital employee association discovered Ms. Kim's embezzlement act late and requested the police to investigate.

Following this incident, the store and café were closed, and currently, a franchise convenience store has taken its place.

The court emphasized the need for severe punishment, stating in its ruling, "She embezzled a large sum of money over a considerably long period, which is a serious crime." Furthermore, it stated, "Since she has not reached an agreement with the victim (the Police Hospital employee association) and the unrecovered damages exceed 80 million won, it is necessary to impose a strict penalty."

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