Former Reporter Denies Charges at First Trial Over 700 Million Won in Illicit Gains From Stock-Picking Articles

[Financial News] A former reporter who was indicted for allegedly making illicit gains of more than 700 million won through front-running trades using favorable stock-picking articles denied the charges at his first trial.
Criminal Division 15 of the Seoul Southern District Court, presided over by Chief Judge No Yu-gyeong, held the first hearing on the morning of the 28th for former business newspaper reporter Park, 34, who was detained and indicted on charges of violating the Financial Investment Services and Capital Markets Act and the Act on Regulation and Punishment of Criminal Proceeds Concealment.
Park was indicted for allegedly earning about 740 million won in illicit gains from October 2022 to July 2024, when he worked as a business newspaper reporter. He is accused of buying stocks before his own stock-picking articles were published, then selling them after the articles drew in buying demand and pushed up the share price.
According to prosecutors, Park used a total of 340 favorable articles in his stock trades. They also applied charges under the Act on Regulation and Punishment of Criminal Proceeds Concealment, saying he used securities accounts under acquaintances' names from May 2023 to July 2024 to avoid detection by financial authorities and made about 550 million won in illicit gains.
Park's side acknowledged that he wrote the articles and traded stocks, but argued that the conduct did not constitute the "improper means, schemes or artifices" required for a crime, and denied the charges on legal grounds.
Park's lawyer said, "The articles Park wrote were not scoop pieces or false reports, but post hoc reports stating that the stock price had already risen." He added, "Park had to write two articles a day for work, and he simply summarized information already reported in HTS, press releases and prior articles before making the short-term trades he had always done."
He continued, "The impact of Park's articles on stock trading was minimal. These days, most people invest after getting information through Telegram or stock recommendation chat rooms." He added, "There were also many cases of losses, and the buy ratio after publication was as high as 92%."
Park's side also challenged the method used to calculate the illicit gains. It argued that because the stock price had already risen substantially before the articles were written, any gains unrelated to the articles should not be included as illicit profits simply by comparing the purchase and sale prices.
As for the use of acquaintances' accounts, the defense said it was only because of company rules restricting stock trading, not because he intended to conceal criminal proceeds. The lawyer said, "We know this was inappropriate behavior for a journalist, but it does not amount to a crime prohibited by law."
The next hearing is scheduled for the morning of the 29th of next month.
[email protected] Park Seong-hyeon Reporter