Haru Invest CEO stabbed during fraud trial: report

The pinnacle of troubled South Korean cryptocurrency lender Haru Make investments was reportedly attacked with a knife in courtroom throughout a fraud trial.

The CEO of South Korean crypto platform Haru Make investments, Hugo Hyungsoo Lee, was attacked with a knife in courtroom in the course of the ongoing fraud trial in opposition to him, South Korean media outlet Digital Asset reported on August 28, citing sources had been current on the trial.

The assault allegedly occurred within the Seoul Southern District Court docket, the place Lee was sitting on the defendant’s bench. Lee had been beneath surveillance because the suspension of deposits and withdrawals from Haru and Delio in June 2023. He was charged in February with fraud beneath South Korea’s legislation on the aggravated punishment of particular financial crimes and was launched on bail in July.

Lee was sitting on the defendant’s sofa when a sufferer of the Haru incident, recognized as “Kang,” attacked him with a hid 2-inch knife. The attacker, who had been watching the proceedings, reportedly charged at Lee and stabbed him within the neck a number of instances. Guards within the courtroom rapidly intervened to subdue Kang.

After the assault, Lee was reportedly seen bleeding on the courtroom flooring, which was lined in bloodstains. Emergency providers arrived shortly afterwards and Lee was transported to a close-by hospital. His present situation is unknown. Kang was arrested on the scene and is now beneath police investigation, the report stated.

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This incident follows current developments within the Haru Make investments case. In February 2024, South Korean prosecutors introduced the arrest of three Haru executives, together with the 2 co-CEOs, on fees of embezzling roughly $826 million from roughly 16,000 customers. The corporate is alleged to have misrepresented its funding practices and used deceptive promoting for its high-yield merchandise.

Native authorities are additionally investigating Haru and Delio after each corporations abruptly halted filming in June 2023. Haru Make investments had claimed to handle deposits utilizing risk-free methods, however was discovered to have invested most of its buyer deposits by means of one particular person.

Learn extra: CEO of Haru Make investments, two others arrested in South Korea for $828 million crypto fraud