Busan Prosecution Resumes Investigation into Bribery Probe

The prosecutors’ office has decided to reinvestigate thoroughly into the allegations concerning Jeong Yun-jae, 43, former presidential protocol secretary, who was allegedly bribed to halt a tax probe.

Jeong Dong-min from the Busan District Prosecutors’ Office said Friday in a press briefing, “After indicting 41-year-old Busan-based construction firm owner Kim Sang-jin and Jeong Sang-gon, 51, then head of the Busan tax service, we have continued our investigation to trace the embezzled money by Kim. The prosecution will continue our inquiry to find out the truth of the affair as there are a number of suspicions with regard to this case.”

Prosecutors previously said they had no plan to investigate former presidential secretary Jeong, who introduced Kim and the head of the Busan tax service. However, they suddenly switched their decision to resume the probe. It is unprecedented that an institution has made public its resumption of a probe when suspects in the case have already been prosecuted.

With regard to the allegations of protocol secretary Jeong’s implication in the bribery scandal, the prosecutor stated, “We have not found decisive clues to summon Jeong for inquiry. However, if new evidence emerges in the probe, we will handle this case based on investigation principles.” The state prosecution is expected to conduct a close examination into the case, with intentions of possibly summoning the former presidential aide if new clues are uncovered.

The main subjects of the inquiry include the whereabouts of the bribe money the head of the Busan tax service received from the construction firm boss, and whether Kim received favorable treatment when he applied for 5.4 billion won in surety from the Kibo Technology Fund and the Korea Credit Guarantee Fund.

When asked whether the construction company owner Kim will be summoned to uncover if he informed presidential aide Jeong of the solicitation of the evading tax probe, prosecutor Jeong said that it would be included in the investigation. With regard to the prosecution’s announcement, the former protocol secretary stated, “I am willingly to respond to the prosecutors’ investigation. I believe that the supplementary probe will be a good opportunity to clear any incorrect suspicion.”

Kim Hyo-seok, floor whip of the United New Democratic Party, commented, “There must be a thorough investigation into the case. If necessary, a special probe should be launched to get to the bottom of the affair.”