Prosecutors said on Friday that it is seeking an arrest warrant for Deutsch Motors chairperson Kwon Oh-soo on charges of stock price manipulation. 

According to the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office, Kwon is accused of violating the capital markets act by leaking inside information and taking steps to manipulate stock prices of the imported car dealer or mitigate their decline. 

The executive allegedly boosted share prices by enticing potential investors with confidential plans that would enhance their value such as launching after-sales services for imported cars, pursuing online sales of used car components and signing investment deals with overseas private equity funds. 

Kwon is also suspected of calling on outside stock investment experts known as “players” to facilitate his schemes. The prosecution suspects he directly bought or nudged others to buy around 16 million stocks of the company, worth 63-point-six billion won in total, for nearly three years since December of 2009. 

Earlier, the prosecution indicted two other people, including the head of an investment firm, for participating in the illicit plans. 

The move comes as the prosecution is also investigating claims that that the wife of former Prosecutor General and main opposition People Power Party’s presidential candidate Yoon Seok-youl was implicated in the stock manipulation case involving Deutsch Motors.