[Exclusive] Former NongHyup Agribusiness Group Executive Accused of Molesting Employee... Police Launch Reinvestigation

The Financial News has learned that police have launched a reinvestigation into allegations that a former executive at NongHyup Agribusiness Group Inc., an affiliate of the National Agricultural Cooperative Federation (NACF), sexually harassed a female employee. NongHyup Agribusiness Group Inc. is confirmed to have accepted his resignation without convening a personnel committee to decide on disciplinary action. In response, NongHyup Agribusiness Group Inc. explained that it had taken protective measures for the female employee and had disciplined the executive in question. The government had already pointed out in a special audit of NACF this January that disciplinary procedures were inadequate and that no women sat on the personnel committee handling sexual harassment cases, so reform efforts at NACF are expected to gain further momentum.
On the 17th, Yeongdeungpo Police Station in Seoul announced that it is conducting a reinvestigation into former NongHyup Agribusiness Group Inc. executive A, who is suspected of indecent assault. According to police and other sources, A is accused of touching the body of his colleague B without consent at a restaurant in Yeongdeungpo District, Seoul, in November last year. B reported the incident to Yeongdeungpo Police Station in December last year and visited the station the same month to give a statement. However, in February this year, B received a notice from Yeongdeungpo Police Station stating that the case would not be referred for indictment due to insufficient evidence.
After B posted about the case on e-People last month, police notified B on the 11th of this month that they had decided to reopen the investigation. B also wrote about the incident on Blind, an anonymous workplace community app. When asked by a reporter why the case was being reinvestigated, police said that the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency and the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors' Office had ordered a reinvestigation.
In a phone interview with The Financial News, B explained that the first report to the human resources team at NongHyup Agribusiness Group Inc. was made in February this year. During the internal counseling process, B said, "After I informed the company about what happened, A contacted me directly," and claimed, "It appears that details of the counseling were leaked in advance." A submitted a letter of resignation to the company in the same month. B added, "In handling his resignation, no disciplinary procedures were carried out beforehand, and there was a lack of explanation about how decisions were made and what standards were applied."
NongHyup Agribusiness Group Inc. stated, "Former executive A submitted his resignation to the subsidiary where he worked and has since left the company, and NongHyup Agribusiness Group Inc. has taken protective measures for the female employee and disciplined the executive in question." The company went on to say, "Regarding the alleged prior leak of information, we are currently conducting a second audit and will verify the facts," and explained, "As for the fact that a personnel committee was not convened before his resignation was submitted, under the Commercial Act and Civil Act, an executive’s resignation takes effect automatically without the company’s acceptance." On the level of disciplinary action, the company said, "A was disciplined based on the audit findings, but the details of the disciplinary measures cannot be disclosed to anyone other than the person concerned."
A, for his part, responded to The Financial News by denying the allegations. In a text message sent to The Financial News, A said, "Because of my mistake, I have caused harm to an employee and to the organization, and I feel devastated," adding, "I had absolutely no intent to molest her. There are statements on Blind that are not true." He continued, "I submitted my resignation and was later questioned by the audit office as well," and explained, "The police decided not to refer the case for indictment, but a supplementary investigation is now under way, so please wait for the outcome."
Meanwhile, the government had already raised issues with NACF’s disciplinary procedures in an interim audit conducted in January. At the time, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (MAFRA) pointed out, "NACF’s policy is to file criminal complaints in principle when executives or employees commit criminal acts, and if a case is to be exempted from complaint, the personnel committee is supposed to review and decide whether to file. However, of the 21 disciplinary cases since 2022, six involved suspected criminal offenses, yet no personnel committee was convened to review whether to file complaints, and no complaints were filed." MAFRA also criticized the organization for the fact that "personnel committees that decide disciplinary measures for misconduct, including sexual harassment, were composed solely of internal staff and did not include any women, resulting in a biased structure."

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