As Cha Ga-won, chairperson of Piak Group and CEO of One Hundred, has been detained on fraud charges exceeding 30 billion won, attention is focusing on whether the deposit for singer and actor Lee Seung-gi's 10.5 billion won jeonse (long-term lease deposit) contract will be returned.

Lee Seung-gi leased a luxury villa in Hannam-dong, Yongsan-gu, Seoul, owned by Cha and his wife, for 10.5 billion won on a jeonse basis in 2024. Of this amount, approximately 7.3 billion won was identified as a bank loan. Concerns have been raised that if the return of the deposit is delayed, the burden of loan interest could increase.

The two sides have shown stark differences in their positions from the beginning regarding the circumstances of the jeonse contract. Lee Seung-gi's side claimed that Cha demanded a jeonse deposit more than three times the market value, while Cha's side countered that Lee Seung-gi first proposed the jeonse contract on the condition of receiving the exclusive contract deposit in kind to avoid the tax burden of owning multiple properties. The conflict deepened as suspicions of jeonse fraud were even raised during the process of terminating the exclusive contract.

Cha is accused of proposing a business utilizing the intellectual property (IP) of entertainers affiliated with his entertainment agency to Nomos Inc., signing a contract, receiving 24.2 billion won in advance payments, and then failing to carry out the actual business. Police are investigating the matter, estimating the damage to be around 30 billion won. Cha's side maintains the position, "It is merely a dispute arising from a hostile merger and acquisition process, and we cannot accept the fraud charges." Additionally, Cha is also facing charges of signing a jeonse contract using a house under an acquaintance's name, receiving approximately 5.4 billion won in deposit, and failing to fulfill the contract.

On the 3rd, the court issued an arrest warrant for Cha on fraud charges under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes, citing "a risk of evidence destruction." Consequently, the issue of returning Lee Seung-gi's jeonse deposit, which expires on the 6th, has taken on an even more complex dimension. The villa in question has been seized by the National Tax Service early this year due to Cha's tax delinquency.

Lee Seung-gi's side stated that they received a promise from the property owners, Cha Ga-won and her husband, to return the deposit on the contract expiration date. However, if the promise is broken again, they plan to take all possible civil and criminal legal action.

Meanwhile, Lee Seung-gi had planned to move to a newly constructed building in Jangchung-dong, Jung-gu, Seoul, to coincide with the expiration of his jeonse contract, but the move became impossible as Piak Construction, the contractor, exercised a lien citing non-payment of the remaining construction costs. Piak Construction is a company headed by Cha's husband, and a banner indicating the exercise of a lien is currently displayed on the building. Lee Seung-gi's side has filed an application for an injunction to order the delivery of the building and is awaiting the court's decision.