Investigation on Lee Hyung-Tack and Shin Seung-Nam`s Meeting

The Independent Counsel Team (ICT) of Cha Jung-Il, who is reinvestigating the `Lee Yong-Ho Gate` caught the circumstantial evidences that President Kim Dae-Jung`s wife`s nephew Lee Hyung Tack, former Senior Executive Director of the Korea Deposit Insurance Corporation, had met with former Public Prosecutor General Shin Seung-Nam few times around last September, when Lee Yong-Ho was arrested. Thus, the ICT is tracing their meetings in relation to the suspicion that Shin pressured the prosecution to suspend its investigation on Lee`s case.

The ICT captured the circumstantial evidences that Lee Hyung-Tack and Shin had met several times at M Hotel`s Chinese and Japanese restaurants, Seocho-Gu, Seoul. It is examining the M Hotel`s reservation records for the last year to confirm these meetings.

In the reservation records, Lee Hyung-Tack and Kim Hyung-Yoon (arrested), former Economy Director of the National Intelligence Service, are listed one times, Lee Yong-Ho is recorded 7-8 times, and Shin is listed about 10 times between last January to August.

In addition, the ICT is carefully considering to examine the telephone and meeting records of former Prosecutor General Shin`s office in order to check whether Lee Hyung-Tack met Shin besides their meetings at M Hotel.

After investigating the details of the telephone records of Shin Seung-Hwan, the younger brother of former Prosecutor General Shin, the ICT confirmed that Shin Seung-Hwan had frequent phone calls with his brother around last September, when Lee Yong-Ho was arrested. Therefore, it is investigating whether Shin Seung-Hwan asked his brother to give a special favor for Lee Yong-Ho.

The ICT is intensively examining the telephone records between Lee Hyung-Tack, Kim Sung-Hwan, a close figure to President Kim Dae-Jung`s second son Kim Hong-Up, and lawyer Lim Woon-Hee around the end of last September.

After finishing advanced investigations, the ICT will summon former Prosecutor General Shin to investigate the reasons for his meeting with Lee Hyung-Tack and whether he received Lee`s illegal request to suspend the prosecution`s investigation.

The ICT`s initial 60-day investigation period was ended on yesterday. Thus, it entered into 30-day of its second investigation period with President`s approval.

Wi-Yong Jung myzodan@donga.com · viyonz@donga.com