The Kakao executive who led the acquisition of ‘Diva on a Desert Island’ production company, was the husband of Yoon Jeong-hee.

While Lee Jun-ho, head of Kakao Entertainment's investment strategy division, is suspected of acquiring a production company at a high price, attention is being paid to whether his wife, actress Yoon Jeong-hee, may have been involved in the case.

According to multiple media outlets, the Financial Investigation Department 2 of the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors' Office is investigating Lee Jun-ho, head of the investment strategy division at Kakao Entertainment, Yoon Jeong-hee's husband, as a key suspect.

The prosecution is said to have detected allegations of breach of trust by the head of this division during the acquisition of KakaoM's production company, Baram Pictures, which took place in July 2020. In an acquisition led by division manager Lee Jun-ho, Kakao M purchased the drama production company Baram Pictures, which had a capital of 100 million won, for 20 billion won. It is reported that Lee and CEO Kim acquired Baram Pictures for 20 billion won, much higher than the market price, and then increased capital by spending 20 billion won. Accordingly, the prosecution believed that Kakao M suffered a total loss of 40 billion won and applied charges of breach of trust under the Special Police Act against Lee Division Manager and Kakao Entertainment CEO Kim Seong-su.

Baram Pictures was in poor financial condition, with operating losses increasing to 100 million won in 2018, 700 million won in 2019, and 2.2 billion won in 2020, but it was acquired by Kakao in 2020. Afterwards, he produced tvN's 'Jirisan' in 2021, Netflix's 'Kingdom: Asinjeon', and tvN's 'Survival as a Celebrity Manager' in 2022. Recent works include tvN's 'Diva of the Desert Island', the Netflix series 'The Sound of the Thief's Sword', and the Disney+ original series 'The Worst Evil'.

The prosecution believes that this acquisition was made with the purpose of driving market profits to Baram Pictures, in which the head of this division invested, Jeong-hee Yoon. The industry is paying attention to whether Jeong-hee Yoon may be related to the incident, and if there was a collusion between Division Manager Jun-ho Lee and Jeong-hee Yoon, or even if there was knowledge of Jeong-hee Yoon, there is a possibility that Jeong-hee Yoon could also be converted to suspect status.

In relation to this, Sublime, Yoon Jeong-hee's agency, explained, "Because it is an issue related to the actor's private life, the company is not intervening," and added, "It will be difficult to further confirm related details. We ask for your understanding."

Yoon Jeong-hee is a former Miss Gyeonggi beauty contestant in the 2000 Miss Korea pageant. She debuted in the 2005 drama 'Heaven, O Heaven' and has occasionally met viewers through her works. She married Lee Jun-ho in 2015, and they have one son and one daughter.

Choi Ji-ye, Ten Asia Reporter wisdomart@tenasia.co.kr