Ferry owner's son hires 'star' lawyer
By Jung Min-ho
The second son of Yoo Byung-eun, late owner of the sunken ferry Sewol, hired a high-profile lawyer following Korea Deposit Insurance Corporation’s (KDIC) request that a U.S. court seize his assets in New York.
According to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York Wednesday, Yoo Hyuk-ki hired Shawn P. Naunton, who became famous for defending former International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn when he was accused of sexually assaulting a hotel maid in 2011.
This came after the KDIC filed an application with the district court last month to confiscate a $6.8 million mansion and a $3.2 million apartment owned by him and his wife.
The KDIC took the action after securing evidence that Yoo Byung-eun wired 32.6 million dollars in 2011 to Ahae Press, a New York-based affiliate of his business group.
The KDIC believes that Yoo Hyuk-ki, CEO of Ahae Press, helped his father hide his assets.
The Korean government is tracking down and freezing the late ferry owner and his family’s assets to compensate victims of the tragedy, which left more than 300 people dead or missing.
Achieving that goal may prove to be more difficult than expected.
Naunton, an attorney for Zuckerman Spaeder LLP, is one of the most famous litigators in New York. With his help, all criminal charges against Strauss-Kahn were eventually dismissed.
Meanwhile, a French court has delayed a decision over whether to extradite Yoo Byung-eun’s daughter.
The appeals court in Paris said Wednesday that it pushed back its decision on Yoo Seom-na to Dec. 17, requesting additional information about embezzlement charges from Korean prosecutors.
She was arrested in Paris in May after Korean prosecutors filed an Interpol “red notice” against her. She is under suspicion of embezzling some 49 billion won ($45 million). She is also believed to be involved in or controlling Chonghaejin Marine, the company that operated the ill-fated ferry.
Her attorney claimed that the Korean government is trying to make a scapegoat of Yoo Byung-eun’s family for the accident, arguing that she would not get a fair trial in Korea.
One of her lawyers, Herve Temime, said that she risks forced labor if she returns home. The court requested more precise information about what punishment she could face if she gets convicted in Korea.