"I Saw Him with Kim Bong-hyun at a Drinking Party"... Former Blue House Administrator Exposes Prosecutor Who Indicted Him

Former Blue House administrator Kim Mo, indicted on charges including bribery related to the Lime scandal [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy reporters Seongpil Jo and Byeongdon Yoo] A familiar name appears in the first trial verdict of former Blue House administrative officer Kim, who received money from former Star Mobility chairman Kim Bong-hyun and delivered documents related to Lime Asset Management from the Financial Supervisory Service. It is Deputy Chief Prosecutor A, who was implicated in a drinking entertainment allegation following Kim Bong-hyun's prison revelations. The name is listed as the investigating prosecutor who indicted former administrative officer Kim. On the afternoon of the 17th, former administrative officer Kim gave testimony unfavorable to Deputy Chief Prosecutor A, who sent him to trial. "It is true that former chairman Kim entertained current prosecutors with drinks in July last year."

The first trial verdict of former administrative officer Kim, obtained by this outlet on the 18th, is 12 pages long on A4 paper. It contains the full details of the criminal facts that, while working at the Blue House Economic Policy Secretariat, he informed former chairman Kim of the Financial Supervisory Service's Lime investigation and received bribes in return. It also includes details of receiving drinks worth 6.5 million KRW at a room salon in Cheongdam-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, last August. This is the room salon where former chairman Kim is presumed to have entertained current prosecutors. However, the verdict does not mention the drinking party in July last year even in a single line.

Former administrative officer Kim said that he was present at the drinking party where former chairman Kim entertained three current prosecutors, including Deputy Chief Prosecutor A, along with former Lime vice president Lee Jong-pil. This is why the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors' Office's special investigation team for prosecutor entertainment and bribery cases (led by Kim Rak-hyun, head of Criminal Division 6) summoned former administrative officer Kim the day before to conduct a three-party confrontation investigation with former chairman Kim and former vice president Lee. During the investigation, former administrative officer Kim reportedly testified that "the drinking entertainment is true, and the date is likely July 18 last year." This was the first time he spoke about the drinking party, which does not even appear in his own verdict.

Former Star Mobility Chairman Kim Bong-hyun Photo by Yonhap News

The prosecution is said to have questioned former administrative officer Kim and others about the circumstances of the drinking party at that time. However, the content of the conversations exchanged during the entertainment has not been disclosed. If concrete evidence of a request related to the Lime investigation emerges, the prosecutors involved will inevitably face punishment. In particular, if Deputy Chief Prosecutor A received entertainment knowing that he might later join the Lime investigation team, an additional charge of prior bribery could be applied. If former administrative officer Kim, who was a public official at the time, also received related requests, the amount of bribes could be increased in the second trial.

Recently, after analyzing testimonies from room salon employees and credit card usage records of the prosecutors, the prosecution reportedly pinpointed the date of the drinking entertainment as July 18 last year. They also secured a receipt from the bar in former chairman Kim's name with the corresponding date. It is known that the parties involved in the entertainment allegations, including Deputy Chief Prosecutor A, denied the charges during the prosecution investigation on the 15th. The prosecution plans to comprehensively review the evidence obtained and summon the suspects again to trace their whereabouts on the day in question.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.