Former Vice Secretary General of KDJPF Summoned

Special Prosecutor Cha Jeong-Il is investigating on the circumstantial evidences of solicitation to stop the investigation of Financial Supervisory Commission by Lee Soo-Dong, Standing Committee member of the Kim Dae-Jung Peace Foundation For Asia-Pacific Region (KDJPF), in terms of the stock price manipulation of Interpion, which is an affiliate of Lee Yong-Ho`s G&G.

The Special Prosecution team (SP) investigated on Prof. Hwang (Konkuk University), former vice Secretary General of KDJPF who had met with Lee Yong-Ho, whether Prof. Hwang was solicited by Lee Soo-Dong for Lee Yong-Ho in March, 2000, and whether he delivered the requests to then Vice Commissioner of Financial Supervisory Commission.

Prof. Hwang, who had participated in the organizing committee of the New Millennium Democratic Party in 1999 and requested the party`s candidacy for 4.13 election, has reportedly kept a friendship with Mr. Kim for a long time.

Previously, SP summoned Mr. Kim and grilled whether he was solicited by the persons of KDJPF in terms of stock price manipulation of Inerpion in March 2000.

SP collected information that Mr. Kim met with Lee Yong-Ho at a hotel around the time that FSC filed a lawsuit against Interpion and is investigating whether a staff of KDJPF arranged the meeting. SP decided to summon the officials of FSC who investigated the stock price manipulation of Interpion in March 2000 to question why they had investigated other related persons of the company but Lee Yong-Ho when they accused other for the charge of stock price manipulation to the Prosecution.

Previously, SP collected a testimony from Do Seung-Hee, who delivered the Lee Yong-Ho`s money to Lee Soo-Dong that "I delivered 50 million won to Lee Soo-Dong with the request for help to cover up the stock price manipulation of Interpion and had a positive response."

SP will summon Lee Soo-Dong soon and request for arrest warrant for bribery when he accepted the solicitation for the lobby to suspend the FSC investigation.

SP is also investigating whether there is any other executives of KDJPF in addition to Lee Soo-Dong had received money from Lee Yong-Ho.

SP received a warrant for search and confiscation on 122 accounts of Lee Yong-Ho and set for the reinvestigation of the amount and the usages of the lobbyist funds.

SP also grilled Mr. Cho Byung-Ho (indicted) who purchased 4.1 billion won of convertible bonds (CB) of KEP Electronics but later returned a part of it, whether he was involved in the lobbyist activities of Lee Yong-Ho through political and administrative circles.

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