![Cha Ga-won, chairman of One Hundred [Photo provided by One Hundred]](https://wimg.heraldcorp.com/news/cms/2026/06/15/news-p.v1.20260605.8c35429274634c36b739f2dd8733c1b6_P1.jpg)
Police have applied for an arrest warrant for Cha Ga-won, head of entertainment agency One Hundred Label, on fraud charges totaling 30 billion won (about $19.7 million).
The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency's financial crimes unit applied for the warrant on charges under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes, Yonhap News Agency reported Monday.
Cha is accused of proposing an intellectual property-based business venture to Nomuss Co. using the IP rights of artists signed to his agency, securing a contract and receiving 24.2 billion won in advance payments — then failing to carry out the project.
Police suspect Cha concealed from Nomuss the existence of a prior contract with another company that showed no signs of expiring soon, effectively entering into a double contract while being unprepared to fulfill the project.
Cha also faces allegations that he arranged a cross-jeonse deal with an acquaintance — agreeing that each party would lease their respective home to the other — collected 5.4 billion won in deposits, and then failed to honor his side of the agreement.
Cha's legal representatives called the warrant application "deeply regrettable," noting that an immediate appeal had already been filed after irregularities were identified during the search and seizure process. They added that they plan to file a complaint with the National Human Rights Commission of Korea over alleged human rights violations by the investigation team during the probe.
One Hundred Label, which Cha co-founded with singer MC Mong, has been embroiled in controversy after failing to pay settlement fees to singers Lee Seung-gi and Lee Mu-jin, leading both to terminate their exclusive contracts. The company also drew criticism for withholding wages from employees and payments to partner firms. Allegations have circulated that Cha diverted company funds to finance overseas gambling trips with MC Mong amid the agency's financial difficulties. The two have also faced separate allegations of having had an extramarital affair.
Cha's legal team had previously pushed back against allegations surrounding a 10.5 billion won jeonse contract linked to Lee Seung-gi in the Hannam-dong neighborhood of Seoul, with attorney Hyeon Dong-yeop announcing a rebuttal and releasing text messages purportedly from Lee.
paq@heraldcorp.com
