Crime & Courts

Lexington man going to prison after stealing millions from employer, prosecutor says

A Lexington man was sentenced to two years in federal prison after pleading guilty to wire fraud, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said Tuesday.

Sung Wook Kim, also known as Paul, used a position of trust to defraud his employer, fabricating three contracts with one of the company’s clients and fraudulently signing documents related to those contracts, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said in a news release.

The 36-year-old Kim worked at the Newberry location of Nexien Inc., a staffing solutions company based in New Jersey, the Index-Journal reported. In 2016, Lee was promoted to general manager of Nexien’s Samsung Electronics Home Appliances America LLC unit, according to the news outlet.

Relying on Kim’s fraudulent contracts, Nexien spent $2,918.962.48, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.

Kim also made $139,250 in bonuses and increased pay as a result of the fraudulent contracts, according to the release.

There was no word what Kim did with the money.

Evidence additionally showed that Kim falsely reported his qualifications to Nexien to get hired, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.

Kim’s prison sentence will be followed by a 3-year term of court-ordered supervision, according to the release. There is no parole in the federal system.

Kim was ordered to pay $2,918,962.48 in restitution and entered a forfeiture judgment of $139,250, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.

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Noah Feit
The State
Noah Feit is a Real Time reporter with The State focused on breaking news, public safety and trending news. The award-winning journalist has worked for multiple newspapers since starting his career in 1999. Support my work with a digital subscription
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