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The Korea Herald
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THE INVESTOR
March 29, 2024

Finance

Samsung, Mirae, insurance firms to shell out W9.5b in alleged insurance plot

  • PUBLISHED :July 31, 2017 - 18:14
  • UPDATED :July 31, 2017 - 18:44
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[THE INVESTOR] A Korean man accused of murdering his Cambodian wife may receive 9.5 billion won from various insurance companies as the Supreme Court in in its initial ruling had acquitted the man of life insurance fraud in May 2017. The final ruling is schedule to be announced on Aug. 16. 




In August 2014, the accused crashed into a stationary trailer parked on the side of a highway near Cheonan with his pregnant wife in the passenger seat. It was initially ruled as a case of sleep-deprived driving accident since the wife died on impact as she was not wearing a seat belt at the time. However, suspicions began to rise as the husband became entitled to the whopping insurance money from various insurance companies. The police conducted a more thorough investigation and became leery of the husband’s motives as new findings such as the husband using his headlight to check the trailer was caught on CCTV. In addition, an autopsy also revealed that the wife was under heavy sedatives which raised further questions.

According to the investigation report, after getting married in 2008, the husband had registered 25 life insurance policies for his wife with 11 insurance companies with a total monthly premium of about 3.6 million won. The 11 insurance companies include Samsung Life Insurance, Mirae Asset Life Insurance, Hanwha Life Insurance, Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance, Postal Insurance, Kyobo Life Insurance, and Heungkuk Fire & Marine Insurance among others. Samsung Life Insurance and Mirae Asset Life Insurance are expected to cough up the bulk of the insurance claim as the combined payout for both is expected to reach about 6 billion won.

“Since the Supreme Court has ruled in favor of the husband as of now, it is highly possible that the case will close if new evidence is not acquired,” said a judicial official monitoring the trial.

The insurance companies have said they will review the case again to file a civil lawsuit if the court rules in favor of the husband.

By Alex Lee (alexlee@heraldcorp.com)

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