Accumulating 7-8 New Town Site Plots Alone... LH Employees Speculate on Gwangmyeong, Siheung, and Other '3rd New Towns'

Photo by Yonhap News Agency / 'LH speculation allegations' Government Joint Investigation Team 1st Investigation Results Announcement

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Juhee] It has been revealed that employees of Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) engaged in land speculation not only in Gwangmyeong and Siheung but also in other planned sites for the 3rd phase new towns.

On the afternoon of the 11th, the government announced the results of the first investigation by the joint investigation team at the Government Seoul Office. According to this, in addition to the 13 LH employees initially suspected of speculation when the Lawyers for a Democratic Society (Minbyun) and the People's Solidarity for Participatory Democracy first raised the allegations, the government identified 7 more individuals.

All 20 individuals suspected of speculation are LH employees, and the government stated that it discovered suspicious past land transactions by these employees in the new town sites and has requested the police to investigate.

Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) headquarters building in Jinju, Gyeongnam./Photo by Yonhap News

The government investigation revealed a total of 25 people holding land in the 3rd phase new towns, but 2 of them inherited the land and 3 purchased it before 2010, so they were excluded as it was difficult to link these cases to speculation.

Among the 20 people reported to the police, one person voluntarily reported their land transactions directly to the LH self-reporting center. A total of 3 people voluntarily reported, but 2 of them stated that it was their family members, not themselves, who purchased the new town land, so they were excluded from the list of 20.

By region, Gwangmyeong and Siheung had the highest number of suspected speculation cases with 15 people, followed by 2 in Changneung, Goyang City, and one each in Wangsuk, Namyangju City; Gwacheon, Gwacheon City; and Gyosan, Hanam City.

By rank, there were 3 employees at level 2 (department head), 9 at level 3 (deputy general manager), 6 at level 4, and 2 at lower ranks.

In Gwangmyeong and Siheung, where the allegations were first raised, various speculative land transactions were identified.

On a mountain in Garim-dong, Siheung City, a case was found where 22 people, including 4 LH employees, jointly purchased one parcel of land.

There was also an LH employee who alone accumulated 7 to 8 parcels of land in the planned new town sites.

Five LH employees jointly purchased a rice paddy in Garim-dong, Siheung City, in June 2019. Four employees jointly bought 3,996㎡ of rice paddy for 1.51 billion KRW, and one employee purchased 2,793㎡ together with his wife for 1.03 billion KRW.

Four employees, some accompanied by their spouses, purchased 5,025㎡ of farmland in Garim-dong for 2.25 billion KRW. They each held shares exceeding 1,000㎡.

In the Gwacheon district, it was confirmed that an LH employee purchased a farmland of 1,122㎡ in May 2017 together with individuals believed to be siblings.

The joint investigation team plans to request the government’s joint special investigation headquarters to investigate these 20 individuals.

Additionally, a second investigation will be conducted targeting officials responsible for related tasks in Gyeonggi, Incheon, and basic local governments, as well as all former employees of local public enterprises.

The joint special investigation headquarters will also handle investigations into various speculation suspicions such as transactions under false names and investigations into spouses and direct relatives.

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