Home > Entertainment > Television

Prosecutors ask for 3-year sentence for actor Hwang Jung-eum on embezzlement charges

Published: 22 Aug. 2025, 12:13

Actor Hwang Jung-eum walks out of Jeju District Court in Jeju after a hearing on Aug. 21. [YONHAP]

Prosecutors requested a three-year prison sentence for actor Hwang Jung-eum, who has been indicted on charges of embezzling over 4.3 billion won ($3.1 million) from her family-owned agency,

At a final hearing held on Thursday, the Jeju District Prosecutors’ Office asked the court to sentence Hwang to three years in prison for violating the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes.

Hwang is accused of embezzling 4.34 billion won from her agency in early 2022, according to the indictment. Hwang was the sole artist under the company, which operated as a family-owned business.

Of the embezzled funds, about 4.2 billion won was invested in cryptocurrency, while the remainder was reportedly used to pay off property and local taxes via credit card.

During her first trial hearing earlier on May 15, Hwang admitted to all charges and requested a continuation of proceedings to allow time to repay the full amount. The court accepted the request. At the time, she had repaid roughly 3 billion won.

Hwang later liquidated personal assets and repaid the remaining amount in two installments on May 30 and June 5. Supporting documents were submitted to the Jeju District Court.

Prosecutors said on Thursday that the sentence request "took into account mitigating circumstances."

A sentencing hearing is scheduled for September.

Hwang debuted as a member of the K-pop girl group Sugar in 2002. She later ventured into acting and has since played lead roles in dramas including "High Kick Through The Roof" (2009-2010), “She Was Pretty” (2015) and “Kill Me, Heal Me” (2015).

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY CHO MUN-GYU [[email protected]]