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South Korean Billionaire Chey Tae-won To Pay $1bn To Ex-Wife In Country’s Largest Divorce Settlement Ever

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Chey Tae-won, South Korean billionaire and chairman of SK Group conglomerate, has been ordered to pay his ex-wife 1.38 trillion won ($1bn) in cash, marking the country’s largest-ever divorce settlement.

According to BBC, the divorce settlement comes almost a decade after Chey Tae-won’s marriage ended in scandal, following the revelation of his extramarital affair and the birth of a child with his mistress.

The Seoul High Court, on Thursday, ruled in favour of Roh So-young, awarding her a share of Chey Tae-won’s company assets after their 35-year marriage.

Roh So-young is the daughter of former South Korean President Roh Tae-woo.

Chey’s lawyers announced plans to appeal the court’s decision, arguing that the ruling was based solely on his ex-wife’s version of events.

The Seoul High Court’s award of 1.38 trillion won to Roh So-young marks a substantial increase from the 66.5 billion won settlement initially ruled by a lower court in 2022.

A lower family court had previously denied Roh So-young’s request to receive a portion of Chey Tae-won’s SK shares, but the Seoul High Court overturned this decision on Thursday, ruling that the shares should be considered joint assets and awarding her a portion of them.

The ruling said, “It was reasonable to rule that, as his wife, Roh played a role in increasing the value of SK Group and Chey’s business activity.”

The court estimated Chey Tae-won’s wealth to be approximately 4 trillion won, and accordingly, Roh So-young, with whom he has three children, is entitled to around 35% of that amount.

Acknowledging Roh So-young’s contributions, the court said she had facilitated the growth of Chey Tae-won’s business by helping to resolve regulatory issues, and additionally, her father, former President Roh Tae-woo, had provided influential support, serving as a “protective shield” for Chey Jong-hyon, the former chairman of SK Group, thereby contributing to the company’s success.

The judgment highlighted that Chey had not shown any remorse “for his foul behaviour in the course of the trial… nor respect for monogamy.”

The court added that it factored in Roh So-young’s emotional pain and distress resulting from Chey Tae-won’s infidelity when determining the increased settlement amount.

In their argument, Chey’s legal team contended that his ex-wife’s political connections had actually hindered his business endeavours rather than benefiting them.

Shares of SK Inc., a global semiconductor giant with diverse interests in telecoms, chemicals, and energy, surged 9% following the court’s ruling.

 

Credit: BBC

BIG STORY

UPDATE [AFCON]: Libya Jittery As CAF Demands Response To Nigeria’s Protest

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The Libyan Football Federation is reportedly panicking after being asked by CAF to “submit documents” concerning the cancellation of the AFCON qualifying Group D match against Nigeria.

Nigeria had refused to play the match after their “plane was diverted to Labraq Airport” where they were “held hostage for 18 hours without food and water.”

According to Libya Al-Ahrar Channel, “Nasser Al-Suwaie,” Secretary-General of the Libyan Football Federation, confirmed that “CAF has given the Libyan and Nigerian associations until the 20th of this month to submit” all relevant documents.

Al-Suwaie further revealed that the Libya FA has “assigned a specialised lawyer” to provide evidence, suggesting “there may be collusion from some parties within CAF,” though he assured that the position of the Libyan Federation remains strong.

He clarified that “the Libyan Federation did not change the course of the plane’s landing,” which was a decision by “the Libyan state,” and this “sovereignty of the Libyan state must be respected.”

The “Super Eagles returned” to Nigeria with reports of difficult conditions, including “sleeping on the bare floor” of the airport. Team manager “Patrick Pascal” described how the “toilet had been deliberately seriously messed up by the Libyan officials” in anticipation of their arrival.

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FG Officially Ends Fuel, FX Subsidies, Unveils Housing Finance Plan To Tackle Unemployment

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The Federal Government has officially ended “fuel and Foreign Exchange (FX) subsidies,” Finance Minister and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, “Wale Edun,” announced on Thursday during the presentation of the Nigeria Development Update by the World Bank in Abuja.

Edun disclosed that the subsidies had significantly strained the nation’s economy, costing Nigeria around “N10 trillion,” which is about five percent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

“Fuel and FX subsidy are extinguished,” the minister stated, marking a major shift in economic policy.

In response to growing unemployment, the government is launching a new plan focused on housing finance.

The initiative includes a mortgage scheme with near single-digit interest rates, intended to boost construction and generate considerable job opportunities.

At the same event, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, “Olayemi Cardoso,” discussed the recent half-percent interest rate hike by the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), attributing the increase to inflationary pressures.

He assured that future policies would be “data-driven and evidence-based.”

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Air Peace: U.S. Government Seeks Forfeiture Of Allen Onyema’s $14 Million Assets In Amended Fraud Case

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The United States government has requested the District Court, Northern District of Georgia, to approve the forfeiture of approximately “$14 million” in assets from Allen Ifechukwu Onyema, CEO of “Air Peace,” following a recent superseding indictment.

The indictment outlines allegations of fraud and money laundering against Onyema and his associate, Ejiroghene Eghagha, who serves as Chief of Administration and Finance at “Air Peace.”

The indictment includes multiple counts: Count One alleges “conspiracy to commit bank fraud,” while Counts Two through Four involve instances of “bank fraud.”

Count Five pertains to “conspiracy to commit credit application fraud,” and Counts Six through Eight are for “credit application fraud.” Counts Nine through Thirty-Five address “money laundering.”

If convicted of the charges in Counts One through Five, the defendants must forfeit property gained through these alleged crimes, including substantial sums in business-related bank accounts.

The U.S. government specifically seeks the forfeiture of “$4,017,852.51” from a JP Morgan Chase Bank account held by “Springfield Aviation Inc.,” “$4,393,842.05” from a Bank of Montreal account linked to “Springfield Aviation Inc.,” and “$5,634,842.04” from a Bank of Montreal account associated with “Blue Stream Aero Services, Inc.”

The indictment states that if these assets are unavailable, the U.S. will pursue other assets of the defendants of equivalent value.

The legal case is being led by U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan, with Garrett L. Bradford and Christopher J. Huber.

On October 13, it was reported that Onyema and Eghagha had been initially indicted in 2019 on charges of “conspiracy to commit bank fraud,” “bank fraud,” and “money laundering.”

The scheme allegedly involved using falsified documents to purchase aircraft and laundering over “$16 million” in proceeds.

In response to these charges, “Air Peace Limited” stated that its legal team is engaged in the matter and working to ensure justice.

Onyema now faces new charges for allegedly “obstructing justice” by submitting false documents to halt an investigation into earlier bank fraud and money laundering charges.

Eghagha is also implicated in the obstruction scheme and faces additional charges tied to the original bank fraud counts.

This information was disclosed in a statement by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Georgia.

“After allegedly using his airline company as a cover to commit fraud on the United States’ banking system, Onyema, along with his co-defendant, allegedly committed additional crimes of fraud in a failed attempt to derail the government’s investigation of his conduct,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan.

“The diligence of our federal investigative partners revealed the defendants’ alleged obstruction scheme, making it possible for the defendants to be held accountable for their aggravated conduct of attempting to impede a federal investigation.”

US Attorney Buchanan further revealed that Onyema is linked to a complex financial scheme.

According to the superseding indictment and court records, Onyema, founder of “Air Peace” (established in 2013), frequently visited Atlanta between 2010 and 2018.

He is accused of opening multiple personal and business bank accounts in Atlanta, through which over “$44.9 million” was allegedly transferred from international sources.

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