Celebrity

Lim Chang-jung's Tearful Revelation on the 'Jojo Party' Scandal: 'I Thought It Was a Year-end Party and Took My Family'

Apr 29, 2023 | by Samriddhi Dastidar

Singer and actor Lim Chang-jung addressed the various suspicions surrounding his involvement in the stock manipulation controversy following the SG (Societe Generale) Securities crash.

In a phone interview with Korea Daily on April 29 (KST), Lim Chang-jung started with a choked-up voice, "I don't know what to do."

The first clarification he made was about his attendance at the so-called 'Jojo Party', an event held to celebrate the surpassing of KRW 1 trillion in managed funds by the stock manipulation group. Lim Chang-jung faced suspicions of deep involvement with the group after it became known that he and his wife, Seo Ha-yan, attended the party together.

Regarding this, Lim Chang-jung said, "At that time, I had only met the group two or three times," and continued, "It was around December when they contacted me, asking, 'What are you doing tonight? Come to our year-end party.' Since they said it was a year-end party, I took my wife and child to dinner with me. At that time, they were investing in my entertainment company, so I thought if I sang for them, it could help attract more investment."

He explained that he only found out it was the 'Jojo Party' when he arrived at the scene. Lim Chang-jung said, "I heard it was a celebration for their company, which manages stocks, surpassing KRW 1 trillion in investments this year. So, I thought, 'This must be a great investing company.' I told them, 'I hope you continue to prosper. I will do my best in the field of cultural content to make my entertainment company global and create synergy.' But the media reported it as if we were celebrating the KRW 1 trillion breakthrough together with the group, which is very confusing."

Lim Chang-jung continued, "To me, the chairman seemed like Warren Buffett at that time. They looked like investors who properly made value investments in good companies. I don't know anything about stocks, but thanks to that friend, I received investments and managed my entertainment company and broadcasting planning well. I also entrusted my assets to that friend." He confessed, "Out of the total KRW 3 billion investment, KRW 2 billion, excluding the previously withdrawn KRW 1 billion principal, was invested by selling company shares, and I think the losses will increase in the future."

Lim Chang-jung also clarified that he didn't know the group bought KRW 8 billion worth of stocks using credit loans. He said, "I don't even know what stocks they bought. The only thing I could see was the balance in my account." He continued, "At first, I thought my KRW 3 billion investment had doubled in just a month, but when I found out about the stocks bought through credit loans, I realized I had been consistently in the red. It's not like I'm claiming to be a victim now that I've suffered losses after condoning it when I was making money. I found out about the situation without knowing that they had bought KRW 8 billion worth of stocks through credit loans or their actual investment methods."

Finally, Lim Chang-jung appealed, "I can somehow pay back the money I earned, but what about my image?" He said, "My wife is very sick right now. She told me many times, 'There's no such thing as good returns in this world. Let's just receive the investment and not invest any money ourselves.' I should have listened to my wife," and ultimately, he choked back tears.