Suspicion of Land Speculation by LH Executives in Gwangmyeong and Siheung New Towns, Police Investigation to Follow?

On the morning of the 2nd, at the People's Solidarity for Participatory Democracy in Jongno-gu, Seoul, officials from the organization disclosed the list of LH Corporation employees suspected of land speculation and the locations of the land during a press conference titled "Public Audit Request on the Alleged Pre-Speculation of Gwangmyeong and Siheung New Towns by Korea Land and Housing Corporation Employees." [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-joo] Police investigation is expected regarding allegations that about 23,028㎡ (7,000 pyeong) of land in the newly designated public housing sites in Gwangmyeong and Siheung New Towns, Gyeonggi Province, were purchased in advance by about 10 employees of Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH).

The civic group Halbindan filed a complaint on the 2nd with the National Police Agency’s National Investigation Headquarters against 14 LH employees and their families for violations of the Public Officials Ethics Act’s conflict of interest prevention obligations and the Anti-Corruption Act’s prohibition on misuse of official secrets.

Halbindan stated, "We urge a thorough investigation expanding to the entire Gwangmyeong and Siheung New Towns, including cases where land was acquired under the names of spouses or relatives, and a full-scale investigation into suspicions of land ownership by Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport officials and LH employees who have access to extensive information on public housing projects across the 3rd New Towns."

At a press conference on the same day, People’s Solidarity for Participatory Democracy and the Lawyers for a Democratic Society (Minbyun) revealed that from April 2018 to June last year, 14 LH employees in the metropolitan area and their spouses and families purchased a total of 10 plots amounting to 23,028㎡ for about 10 billion KRW. It was explained that about 5.8 billion KRW of the purchase funds are estimated to have come from loans from financial institutions, with loans concentrated at specific financial institutions.

They pointed out, "We confirmed circumstances where several LH employees shared ownership of land through land registries," adding, "This is highly likely to violate the Public Officials Ethics Act and the Anti-Corruption Act." Since such suspicions were revealed by investigating randomly selected plots, they plan to request a public audit from the Board of Audit and Inspection, believing that larger-scale speculation involving the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and LH may exist.

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