South Korean Actress Hwang Jung-eum Receives Suspended Sentence in $3.1M Crypto Embezzlement Case

South Korean actress Hwang Jung-eum avoided prison time after being convicted of embezzling ₩4.34 billion ($3.1 million) from her agency to purchase cryptocurrency. The Jeju District Court handed down a two-year suspended sentence, citing full repayment and her clean record as mitigating factors.

Prosecutors had sought a three-year prison term for the 13 transactions executed in 2022, with ₩4.2 billion funneled into crypto purchases. The case marks another high-profile intersection of celebrity and digital asset controversy in South Korea's tightly regulated market.

Court documents reveal the funds were initially recorded as provisional payments before being diverted to Hwang-controlled accounts. The suspended sentence requires four years of probation, with imprisonment contingent on violating terms.