Prosecutors Clear Chef Baek in Import Allegations Over Cooking Equipment
Creatrip Team
2 months ago
South Korean celebrity chef Baek Jong-won and his company The Born Korea were cleared by the Seoul Customs special investigation unit of allegations that they split-imported foreign cooking equipment to avoid customs procedures. The probe stemmed from a YouTube promo video showing Turkish-made equipment; Baek’s comment about asking to exclude electrical motors prompted complaints that motors were imported separately and later fitted with Korean-made parts. The company told investigators the units arrived without motors and that Korean motors and electrical components were fitted later; authorities closed the case with no charges. This follows several previous investigations last year into Baek and his businesses—over pesticide sprayer claims, food labeling and country-of-origin (won산지표기법) issues—that largely resulted in no charges or non-prosecution findings.
