The Blue House Suspected of Interfering in `Kim Hong-Up Probe`

Chief secretary office for civilian affairs of the Blue House has questioned a witness, who was hospitalized during the prosecution investigation on the irregularities of vice chairman of the Asia-Pacific Peace Foundation Kim Hong-Up, whether the prosecution used coercive measures against the witness. The incident raised suspicion that the Blue House is trying to influence the prosecution investigation.

A presidential secretary for civilian affairs Kim Hyun-Seop said on May 20, `To check the facts, I have sent an officer in the chief secretary office for civilian affairs to Yoo Jin-Gul (who is a friend of Hong-Up) on May 10, and the probe on coercive investigations is a duty of the presidential secretary office for civilian affairs.

Presidential secretary Kim added, `We confirmed that no coercive investigation took place, but we did not induce any statement from the witness on coercive investigation.`

Defense lawyer Choe Young-Sik who met Mr. Yoo with a close associate of Kim Hong-Up on May 12 claimed to some press, `Since Mr. Yoo wanted to discuss with me about the coercive investigation of the prosecution, I have advised him on raising a petition to the Human Rights Committee, filing charges against the nation, a press conference, and other proposals, but I did not persuade him to publicly expose the coercive investigation.`

However a related person of the central investigative office of the Supreme Public Prosecutor`s Office (SPPO) disclosed, `As higher positioned prosecutors informed us that the defense lawyer of Mr. Yoo was going to hold a press conference on alleged coercive investigations, we have reinvestigated internally whether a coercive investigation took place or not.`

Additionally the related person of the SPPO also declared, `Mr Yoo has a heart problem the day after he hospitalized, on May 10, but the coercive investigation is known to have never happened, and Mr. Yoo`s side also said nothing that kind of thing ever happened.`

Also the central investigative office of the SPPO confirmed in the day that Kim Hong-Up replaced a cash amount of 1.2 billion Won to bank notes of one million denominations through his friend Kim Seong-Hwan last year. The prosecution is investigating the circumstances of the money laundering and the expenditure details. Thus, so far the amount of money laundering committed by Kim Hong-Up increased to 2.8 billion Won.

The prosecution views the money laundering of 1.2 billion Won to bank notes by Kim Hong-Up, following the money laundering of 1.6 billion Won through former administration chief Mr. Kim of the Asia-Pacific Foundation, was intended to hide the source of the money.

Kim Seong-Hwan took over the cash of 1.2 billion Won between January and July last year, has the employees of Seoul Music Broadcasting replace the money with bank notes of one million denominations, and transferred the bank notes to Kim Hong-Up.

However, Kim Seong-Hwan reportedly stated, `As Kim Hong-Up requested to replace the cash with easy-to-use denominations, I did so, but I do not know the source of the money.`

Wi-Yong Jung viyonz@donga.com