A prominent South Korean businessman residing in the U.S. territory of Guam is under investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) on charges of being in long-term contact with North Korea and illegally providing financial support to the regime.
It was also revealed during the FBI investigation that the South Korean government was aware of the businessman’s suspected acts of espionage and has been tracking him.
Guamanian media outlet Kandit News reported on Dec. 13 that “federal authorities have unsealed a warrant in the U.S. District Court of Guam accusing a prominent businessman with extensive holdings in Guam and allegedly scandalous business dealings in Rota and Tinian of acting as an agent for North Korea.”
The arrest warrant for the businessman, surnamed Cho, contains allegations that he sent a total of $2.5 million between July and August 2018 in five installments of approximately $500,000 each to recipients presumed to be individuals or entities in Hong Kong and China.
The FBI believes that the transactions may have been laundering money to support North Korea. The investigative authorities found it suspicious that transfers were made immediately after the deposits were made.
Between May and June 2014, Cho received $25,000 in remittances from a bank in Hong Kong on seven occasions to his business-related account, which the FBI pointed out as unusual income compared to previous years.
The FBI also determined that Cho exchanged emails with North Korean diplomats including Lee Ki-ho, counselor at the North’s UN mission in New York. Cho also visited North Korea three times for business purposes including hotel investments.
The U.S. International Emergency Economic Powers Act prohibits U.S. citizens or U.S.-based companies from conducting business with North Korea. To do so, citizens or businesspeople must obtain permission from the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control. Local media reported that Cho had not received permission from U.S. authorities.
During the investigation process, it was also revealed that the South Korean government had been surveilling Cho for a long time.
“As part of FBI’s official liaison relationship with the Republic of Korea Consulate [ROKCON], on Oct. 6, 2020, a ROKCON official in Honolulu met with the FBI and expressed interest in Cho,” read the arrest warrant document from the FBI released by Kandit News, referring to South Korea by its official name, the Republic of Korea. “The ROKCON official indicated Cho maintained high-level contact with DPRK officials as the DPRK officials were interested in doing business with him.”
The DPRK stands for North Korea’s official name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
“The Republic of Korea government started looking into Cho approximately three years ago,” the FBI’s arrest warrant document further said.
According to local reports, Cho, a South Korean citizen and permanent resident of the United States, is a businessman who runs golf and resorts in Guam, Tinian, Rota, and other Northern Mariana Islands. He is known to have been active in student activism during his college years and then moved to the United States to get involved in real estate.
BY CHUNG YEONG-GYO, LEE YOO-JUNG, LIM JEONG-WON [lim.jeongwon@joongang.co.kr]
