Coko Entertainment find themselves having trouble paying their staff and artist signed under them following the sudden disappearance of their CEO Kim Woo Jong, who allegedly embezzled money from the company.
On November 27th, CEO Kim Woo Jong disappeared with an uncertain amount of the company’s funds, which were meant to pay their artists, staff, future projects and current businesses. It was revealed in a latest update that the CEO had halted payments to artists who had either opted out of the company or whose contracts had expired since August.
Currently, Coko Entertainment is attempting to figure out how much the CEO had taken off with, as the unknown amount has put a halt on police investigations, who are also attempting to track down the missing businessman. A representative with the company stated, “We are focusing on trying to figure out exactly how much of the company’s money as well as money that was meant for artists and employees.”
Once a certain amount of how much money went missing is found and how much damage this has caused, the agency is planning to also request an investigation from Interpol. Coko Entertainment and police have already released a warrant out for Kim Woo Jung.
However, the current problem still raises the question, will the artists under the company take legal action soon? For now, they have remained quiet in hopes the agency will figure things out.
“Since the artists were all with us for a long time, they want to help the company figure the situation out,” said the agency.
But this non-payment trend will surely become a problem for the artists, as their livelihood depends on getting paid. Many artists have already nullified their contract with the company, while others have decided to resign. Either way, many have still not been paid from August to November.
Coko Entertainment was the host of the Busan National Comedy Festival and focused on expanding the culture of comedy within Korea. With Kim Jun Ho at the forefront, the company made a name as an innovator in the industry but are faced with a giant obstacle through this incident.
All the employees are on an indefinite hiatus as well. Coko Entertainment stated, “Kim Jun Ho who spend so much time and money is wounded, we are trying to figure things out with Kim Jun Ho leading everyone.”
Source: Ten Asia
