The prosecution has requested an arrest warrant for former chairman of Kumho Asiana Group Park Sam-koo amid allegations of unfair transactions among group affiliates during his chairmanship.
The request was filed Monday on charges of violating anti-monopoly and fair trade laws.
Prosecutors believe the allegations are serious and Park may destroy evidence and try to get his story straight with other concerned parties.
He is accused of unfairly mobilizing Asiana Airlines and other group companies to support Kumho Buslines, a transportation service provider in which he and his family had a large stake. The charges were revealed last year by the Korea Fair Trade Commission.
The watchdog concluded that with the unfair inter-affiliate support, Kumho Buslines earned about 16-point-nine billion won in gains from interest rate gaps, while Park and his family pocketed at least seven-point-seven billion in profits and 250 million won in dividends.
The commission imposed a fine on the group and reported Park and two executives to the prosecution for a criminal investigation.
Last November, prosecutors had raided Kumho Asiana headquarters in Seoul and went on to arrest a former group executive and a watchdog official for allegedly conspiring to delete documents unfavorable to the company.
Park was questioned last month as a suspect. His request for an independent panel to review the adequacy of the investigation was also rejected.