[Editorial] Disclose Who the Protecting Force Behind `Yoon Tae-Sik Gate`

The fact that a wife-murderer, for whom the National Intelligence Agency fabricated a cover-up story, became a venture capital businessman and secured the protection of politicians shows that political and the NIS leadership can and will do anything in their power. For fifteen years, Yoon Tae-shik, who is on trial for murdering his wife, evaded the law under the protection of the Korean CIA and the NIS and expanded his business. On top of this, he is accused of putting a former state minister as the company president and securing the services of a former National Assembly member as the company supervisor for his lobbying purposes.

It is becoming clear that Yoon was putting up a desperate lobbying effort as the police began a reinvestigation of the case before the expiration of the official arrest period and as the Financial Supervisory Service closed in on charges of embezzlement and falsifying reports on stock value. His efforts seemed to bear fruit when the NIS stepped in and stopped the police investigations.

Every time suspicions rose about the explosive increase in stock values, the lobby forces immediately took action. The National Assembly member in question is reported to have invested 100 million won. The stocks, whose original value was 5000 per stock, were valued over 80,0000 won per stock in the off-board market, investing 100 million won would have yielded billions of won. Although stock lobbying is generally done under an assumed name, it is not difficult for a determined public prosecutor to find out the real identity of the party involved.

Names of Millennium Democratic Party and Grand National Party members have come up in the Yoon Tae-shik Gate. As a result, the MDP is leaking stories that implicate an opposition party politician while the GNP is jumping up and down, accusing them of trying to commit a mutual suicide. Both the ruling and opposition parties should stop at encouraging a through investigation of the matter by the public prosecutor and avoid getting into a political battle. Although no one knows how much money went into the politicians` and the NIS`s pockets, but seeing how big the venture capital bubble was at the time, it is highly likely that those involved were rolling in money.

Yoon Tae-shik turned his wife, whom he murdered, into a spy, became an anti-Communist hero, and quickly climbed as a cherished venture capitalist – a story with more twists and turns than your regular thriller flick. The NIS and political leaders are deeply implicated in this thriller. No matter how long it takes, we must investigate this case fully and awaken the political and public leadership.

One worries whether this case will destroy the morale of those venture capitalists who are trying to overcome the difficult times with their hard work.

hthwang@donga.com