Statement about ‘stock price management’ in Mirae Asset account recording
Black Pearl document also suggests awareness by Ms. Kim, [Seoul Economy],
“The prosecution has newly obtained hundreds of recording files containing the voice of Ms. Kim Keon-hee during its reinvestigation of her alleged involvement in stock price manipulation of Deutsch Motors. These files are reported to contain multiple instances suggesting that Ms. Kim was aware her securities account was being used for stock manipulation. The prosecution sees this as strong evidence supporting the charge of conspiracy in stock manipulation.”
According to legal sources on the 17th, the Seoul High Prosecutors’ Office recently raided a brokerage firm to confirm the transaction details of a Mirae Asset Securities account operated under Ms. Kim’s name. In this process, they additionally secured hundreds of call recordings between Ms. Kim and the staff in charge of the account spanning approximately three years since 2009.
The analyzed transcripts reportedly contain statements by Ms. Kim to the effect that “they are managing the stock price” or dialogues with the staff assuming stock manipulation. Additionally, many remarks suggesting Ms. Kim was aware of the stock price rigging have been reportedly included, such as objecting to the distribution ratio of profits.
New indications of Ms. Kim’s connection to Black Pearl Investments were also uncovered. Some of the seized recordings reportedly contain conversations where Ms. Kim sent specific documents and reviewed the content with a staff member. This document is said to be identical to the so-called ‘Keon-hee Kim Excel file’ seized during the 2022 raid on Black Pearl, suggesting Ms. Kim may have directly received reports on the balances and withdrawal details of accounts used in stock manipulation.
Ms. Kim has consistently told prosecutors that she had entrusted the account to a third party and was unaware of the transaction details, but the newly secured recordings contradict these claims.
The prosecution also traced the IP access to Ms. Kim’s accounts and confirmed that many accesses took place from Black Pearl Investment’s office. Black Pearl is regarded as the investment advisory firm deemed by court rulings to have led the Deutsch Motors stock price manipulation.
The prosecution, after evaluating these circumstances, has notified Ms. Kim for a second summons, but considering her current hospitalization due to health deterioration, an actual summons seems unlikely. Ms. Kim’s side stated they could not confirm the precise contents of the recordings and thus could not comment, but maintained their stance of “not recognizing the stock manipulation” as unchanged.