Hugo Hyungsoo Lee, the CEO of South Korean crypto yield platform Haru Invest, was attacked with a knife during his ongoing fraud trial in Seoul.
According to a report by local news outlet Digital Asset, the incident occurred in the Seoul Southern District Court, where Lee was seated at the defendant’s bench facing charges related to the suspension of operations at Haru and Delio earlier this year.
The attack took place as the court was in session, with the assailant identified as “Kang,” a victim of the alleged fraud.
Kang Attacked Lee With Concealed Knife
Kang, who had been attending the trial as an observer, suddenly rushed at Lee and attacked him with a concealed 5 cm knife, stabbing him multiple times in the neck.
The intervention of courtroom guards prevented further injury, and Kang was immediately subdued and arrested at the scene.
Witnesses described the aftermath as chaotic, with Lee bleeding on the courtroom floor.
Emergency medical services arrived promptly and transported him to a nearby hospital.
The severity of his injuries and his current condition remain unknown.
The attack comes amid a high-profile investigation into Haru Invest, which began after the platform suspended deposits and withdrawals in June 2023.
In February 2024, South Korean prosecutors charged three Haru executives, including Lee, with embezzling approximately $826 million from around 16,000 users.
The company is accused of misrepresenting its investment strategies and misleading customers with false advertising about its high-yield products.
Both Haru and Delio are under intense scrutiny from local authorities as investigations continue.
The companies had claimed to use risk-free methods for managing client deposits but were found to have invested most funds through a single individual.
South Koreans Turn to Crypto
A recent survey has revealed that most young South Koreans are losing faith in the national pension system, with many stating they see crypto and stocks as a better alternative.
The study found that more than three-quarters of people aged 20-39 “don’t trust” state-issued pensions.
Over half of respondents who said they were making their own pension plans claimed they were building their retirement funds with stocks and crypto.
Interestingly, even election candidates themselves have exposure to cryptocurrencies, with approximately 7% of them owning digital assets, according to a report by Yonhap that analyzed their asset disclosures.
Just recently, it was reported that South Korea is set to introduce stricter regulations for token listing on exchanges, including the blocking of tokens that have been hacked.
The country’s financial authorities are preparing to release guidelines for virtual asset trading support, expected to be published by the end of this month or early next month.
Notably, South Korea plays a significant role in the global cryptocurrency market, with the South Korean won being the most traded fiat currency pair in the first quarter of the year.
Trading volume for the won reached $456 billion on exchanges, slightly surpassing the $455 billion traded in U.S. dollars.
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