Landing International, operator of the Landing Casino on Jeju Island in South Korea, may not be able to reclaim millions allegedly stolen by a former employee.
The employee is accused of stealing KRW14.56 billion (US$13.4 million) in December. And according to a report that originated in Jeju Sori, Jeju law enforcement indicates that Landing may not be entitled to get its money back—even if that employee is tracked down.
Inside Asian Gaming reports that, under South Korean law, all criminal proceeds and property derived from crime is subject to confiscation and can only be returned to the claimant after the accused is prosecuted. There’s a wrinkle there: if identified as criminal funds, the money will be redirected to the national treasury instead.
Jeju Sori cited a famous South Korean case from 2011 in which KRW11 billion (US$9.8 million) was found buried under a garlic field and eventually confiscated after being found to be the proceeds of an internet gambling operation.
Landing Casino has already stated that the KRW13 billion (US$11.6 million) in stolen funds already recovered by Jeju police are designated as operating funds of its parent, Landing International Development Ltd. The funds are currently being held in a bank designated by the National Police Agency.
Police last month arrested one of three people alleged to be involved in the theft – a man in his 30s of Korean descent who is believed to have assisted the main suspects.
