According to police on the 14th, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency’s Financial Crime Investigation Unit questioned CEO Cha Ga-won on the 6th and 7th. Cha is facing charges of fraud under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes. This marks the first time Cha has appeared before the police as a suspect.
CEO Cha is suspected of proposing partnerships to industry companies by leveraging the intellectual property (IP) of affiliated artists and receiving advance payments, but then failing to carry out the business. The Financial Crime Investigation Unit is currently investigating after merging three separate complaints and previously searched the offices of the subsidiary, Big Planet Made Ent, last month. The alleged fraud amount is reported to be in the 30 billion won range.
In response to the allegations, Cha’s side countered that the complaints are part of an “illegal operation” intended to “seize management rights” through a hostile takeover of Big Planet Made Ent.
Meanwhile, artists associated with One Hundred, including Taemin, Lee Seung-gi, and THE BOYZ, have recently left the agency, citing reasons such as unpaid settlements. The conflict between One Hundred and THE BOYZ is still ongoing. Nine members of THE BOYZ, excluding New, notified One Hundred of their intent to terminate their exclusive contracts due to unpaid settlements and breaches of management obligations. Last month, a court granted an injunction to suspend the exclusive contracts filed by the members of THE BOYZ against One Hundred.
