▲ Hyundai Oilbank
An executive at HD Hyundai Oilbank has been arrested on charges of fuel price fixing.
Judge Budong-sik of the Seoul Central District Court issued the arrest warrant yesterday (June 18) after conducting a pre-arrest interrogation (warrant validity review) for an executive surnamed Kim from the company's pricing department, citing "concerns over the destruction of evidence."
The court dismissed the arrest warrant for another employee from the same department, who underwent the same review, stating that "there is insufficient evidence to justify concerns regarding the destruction of evidence or flight, considering the suspect's position, role, and the current status of the investigation."
Previously, the Fair Trade Investigation Department of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office (led by Chief Prosecutor Na Hee-seok) had requested arrest warrants for both individuals on charges of violating the Monopoly Regulation and Fair Trade Act.
Four major oil refiners—SK Energy, GS Caltex, S-Oil, and HD Hyundai Oilbank—are suspected of colluding to arbitrarily raise or freeze the prices of fuel and petroleum products distributed domestically through prior consultation.
Prosecutors suspect that the simultaneous surge in domestic fuel prices immediately following the outbreak of the war in Iran was the result of planned collusion among these refiners.
The investigation is also looking into allegations that the refiners had been engaged in long-term fuel price fixing even before the war in Iran began.
There are also allegations that the refiners abused their superior bargaining position against independent gas stations by signing supply contracts at higher prices than those offered to company-owned gas stations, thereby stifling price competition.
This involves suspicions that they forced independent gas stations to sign contracts requiring them to supply only products from a specific refiner, preventing them from choosing cheaper products from other companies.
Prosecutors have been conducting the investigation since March 23, including raids on these oil refiners and the Korea Petroleum Association.
With the arrest of the HD Hyundai Oilbank executive, follow-up investigations, including attempts to secure the custody of officials from other refiners, are expected to accelerate.
Previously, President Lee Jae-myung emphasized, "We must strictly punish those who attempt to gain unfair profits by exploiting difficult market conditions," adding, "We need to thoroughly crack down on illegal activities such as collusion, hoarding, and cornering by refiners and gas stations, and if violations occur, impose stern sanctions that are several times the amount of the profits gained from such acts."
(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.