President Roh’s Precedent in Bribery Case Repeats Years Later

Former presidential aide Jeong Yun-jae reportedly pulled lots of strings to smother an ongoing tax investigation. The “Jeong scandal” resembles the 2002 “Sun & Moon scandal” in many respects. Always boasting of its ethical legitimacy, the Roh administration pressed ahead with its own reform initiatives. Now, however, nobody buys its “clean” allegations.

No Physical Presence, No Prosecution for Bribery –

One day in November 2002, then presidential candidate Roh Moo-hyun met with Sun & Moon chairman Moon Byeong-wook for breakfast at a hotel in Seoul. Moon went to the same high school as Roh. On hand were key players in the Roh inner circle such as Lee Gwang-jae.

After the meal, Roh reportedly left first, citing functions he had to attend at nearby places. Chairman Moon handed over a $100,000 check to Lee, and a bank manager on hand at the meeting cashed it for Lee.

The DA’s office gave up its personal jurisdiction over Roh, then candidate and now president, saying that Roh’s absence at the moment of the “crime” exonerated him from prosecution. A source on the investigation team, however, confessed later, “Roh was just steps apart from them.”

A similar story repeated in August 2006. A meeting took place at a Korean restaurant near Cheong Wa Dae on August 26, 2006. On hand for the meeting were former presidential aide Jeong, then Busan Tax Service head Jeong Sang-gon and an individual named “Kim Sang-jin,” who was introduced to the aide, Jeong, by Jeong Sang-gon.

After the dinner, Jeong (aide) left early for a function. About 10 minutes later, Kim handed over a briefcase containing $100,000 cash to Jeong Sang-gon.

The DA’s office once again dropped the bribery charge, citing the “physical presence” requirement.

Bribes Kill Tax Probes –

Tax authorities launched a special probe into the Sun & Moon group in June 2002, and imposed taxes and fines amounting to $1.8 million. One year later, however, the DA’s investigation found that authorities had cut it down to $230,000.

Many suspected that President Roh asked then National Tax Service head Sohn Yeong-rae for a special favor. Sohn was found to have ordered the investigation team to cut down the back tax payments, and later was prosecuted for the order.

In the recent case, Jeong Sang-gon, who was prosecuted on bribery charge involving the $100,000 in cash from Kim Sang-jin, also smothered a tax probe against Kim’s company, and revealed the informer’s identity to Kim. A number of people believe that only former aide Kim could have made this happen.

President Roh’s Way of Explaining Also Repeats -

Charged with bribery stemming from the “Sun & Moon scandal,” Lee Gwang-jae, a lawmaker at that time, shed tears at a National Assembly hearing, not arguing for his innocence, but expressing his disappointment at the harsh treatment his fellow parliamentary members showed towards him. When the National Assembly overrode the vetoed bill for appointment of independent counsel, he confessed that he lied because he had no “guts” to come forward with the truth.

Likewise, former aide Jeong, when asked by the Dong-A about the “scandal,” rendered a categorical denial. On Thursday, however, he confessed, “I was not prudent enough. Jeong Sang-gon must have felt pressure.”

jin0619@donga.com