Prosecutors Restrict Kim Il-ju for Receiving 1.4 Billion Won

Prosecutors restricted Kim Il-ju, former commissioner of the Grand National Party local office in the Joongwon district in Sungnam, on May 10 on charges of violation of attorney laws and receiving 1.4 billion won from the president of Miraero RED, a real estate developer. In return, Kim arranged meetings with Seoul City Mayor Lee Myung-bak to file a petition to ease the regulations limiting the heights of buildings around Cheonggaechen. The indictment came after Seoul Deputy Mayor Yang Yoon-jae was charged for taking 208 million won from Gil on the condition that the vice mayor solve Gil’s complaints. The prosecutor’s office has been expanding its investigation on suspicions and irregularities related to the Cheonggyecheon Restoration Project.

Special Division One of the Seoul Central Public Prosecutor’s Office (Director: Yu Jae-man) announced, “The office has banned four to five people, including civil servants at Seoul City Hall, from leaving the country.”

Prosecutors said that Kim allegedly received a total of 1.4 billion won through last April in more than six installments, including 650 million won in cash put in seven different bags from Gil and delivered by Equus to Kim’s office in Sungnam in Gyeonggi in September 2003.

The investigation by prosecutors indicates that Kim said that he could help ease regulations on the limit on heights of buildings as Gil wanted, and that Kim asked for around one billion won in return for arranging personal meetings with Mayor Lee.

An official from the prosecution office said that Kim showed off his ability and close relationship with the mayor, saying that he graduated from the same university as Mayor Lee, and that he served as the commissioner of the GNP district office. Kim ran in the 16th general election in 2000 as a candidate of the GNP, but failed to be elected.

However, Kim reportedly has denied allegations of taking the money.

Meanwhile, Seoul city explained in the afternoon on the same day, “Mayor Lee met Kim last February and had a meeting with Vice Mayor Yang and Gil, who claims that he gave a huge amount of money to Kim, at his office in April, but they did not have a conversation about petitions,” adding, “The mayor met Gil for a short time since another Gil, a great reporter of KBS, introduced Gil as his far relative and the mayor had a short meeting with Kim since he visited the Mayor without any appointment and wanted to see him.”

Keuk-In Bae Kang-Myoung Chang bae2150@donga.com tesomiom@donga.com