200억 원 탈세 의혹: 차은우와 이하늬의 1인 기획사 실태 분석

[Sports Today reporter Kim Tae-hyung] Singer-actor Cha Eun-woo is facing allegations of tax evasion in the range of ₩20 billion (about $15 million), and investigators say actor Lee Hanee’s personal company lists a Seoul gomtang (beef soup) restaurant as its registered branch address.

On the 8th, MBC’s investigative program Straight examined how single-person agencies run by celebrities operate.

Seoul’s Regional Tax Office audited Cha Eun-woo last year and later notified him of a tax assessment in the ₩20 billion range (about $15 million). At the center of the probe is a one-person corporation established by Cha’s mother.

According to the broadcast, that corporation purchased a building and land in July 2020 — including a charcoal-grilled eel restaurant and adjacent woodland — totaling 14,973 m² (about 4,500 pyeong) for ₩1,750,000,000 (about $1.31 million). Of the purchase price, ₩800,000,000 (about $600,000) came from a loan taken out in the corporation’s name.

In February of last year, the company acquired an additional plot of land measuring 4,069 m² (about 1,230 pyeong) directly in front of the restaurant for ₩1,100,000,000 (about $825,000). Over five years the firm amassed real estate roughly the size of three soccer fields, yet the broadcast said it remains unclear what, if any, entertainment-agency activities the company conducted.

Straight also spotlighted a beef-and-gomtang restaurant in Yongsan-gu, Seoul. That restaurant is listed as the branch address for Lee Hanee’s personal corporation, but the program found no visible office or agency space inside the restaurant. A restaurant representative said they are close to Lee Hanee’s husband and acknowledged a connection to the agency, but declined to provide details.

Lee Hanee’s personal company currently operates under the name Hope Project. An American national — her husband — is listed as CEO, and Lee Hanee is registered as an internal director. The company bought the building that houses the gomtang restaurant in November 2017 for ₩6,450,000,000 (about $4.84 million). With a maximum mortgage bond recorded at ₩4,200,000,000 (about $3.15 million), reporters estimated the company likely borrowed around ₩3,500,000,000 (about $2.63 million), roughly half the purchase price. The building’s current market value was reported at about ₩12,000,000,000 (about $9.0 million).

The production team visited the corporation’s registered headquarters to ask why only the restaurant appeared to be in operation, but they found no signage identifying it as an agency. Hope Project declined to comment, saying it had no official position.

Previously, Lee Hanee — like Cha Eun-woo — faced a tax reassessment of roughly ₩6,000,000,000 (about $4.5 million) over allegations of tax avoidance through a one-person agency. Her former agency, Team Hope, said the building was intended to serve as the corporation’s main office and a mixed cultural-art space. They added that delays in transferring ownership meant the previous tenant’s lease remained in place.

However, public registry records show the ownership transfer was completed in 2020, so the fact that the restaurant has continued operating there remains difficult to reconcile.

Straight also reported that other celebrities — including Ryu Jun-yeol, Hwang Jung-eum and Lee Byung-hun — have purchased buildings through corporate entities because corporations often find it easier to secure loans, can deduct loan interest and building maintenance as corporate expenses, and may pay lower corporate tax rates on gains from property sales. The program suggested those advantages are being used to grow celebrities’ assets.

[Sports Today reporter Kim Tae-hyung ent@stoo.com]
「The closest, most FunFun news ⓒ Sports Today」