Police Sacrifice Weekend for 'Real Estate Speculation Investigation'... Accelerate Forced Investigation

Investigation Request + Reporting Center + Internal Intelligence
Synergy Effect...Significant Increase in Investigation Targets
Search Warrants and Multiple Summons Expected Next Week

Kim Young-heon, Auditor of the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, and staff members entered the building on the afternoon of the 19th to request an investigation into a total of 23 local government officials and employees of local public enterprises suspected of speculation at the Joint Special Investigation Headquarters of the National Police Agency in Seodaemun-gu, Seoul.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-ju] As the first suspect was summoned for questioning in connection with real estate speculation allegations triggered by employees of Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH), the police investigation is gaining momentum. The synergy effect of additional investigation requests from the government joint investigation team, tips through the police reporting center, and the police's own intelligence is leading to a significant expansion of the investigation targets.

According to the police on the 20th, the Government Joint Special Investigation Headquarters (Special Investigation Headquarters), led by the National Police Agency's National Investigation Headquarters (NIH), is dedicating itself to related investigations over the weekend, including analyzing investigation request materials, seized items, suspect statements, and verifying the facts of intelligence obtained.

On the previous day, the Gyeonggi Southern Provincial Police Agency summoned three LH employees as suspects for the first time since the investigation began. Among them was Kang Mo, an LH employee considered a key suspect. Kang is known to have been the first among the LH employees under investigation to purchase land in the 3rd New Town area, and the scale of his purchases was the largest. The police reportedly focused on questioning Kang, who denies the charges, about whether he used internal information.

The Special Investigation Headquarters also received additional investigation requests following the second investigation results announced by the government joint investigation team. With an additional 23 people, including local government officials and employees of local public enterprises confirmed to be involved in speculation allegations, the total number of people under investigation, including 20 current LH employees, has increased to 43. Furthermore, the joint investigation team handed over the list of 127 individuals who did not submit personal information among the investigation targets to the Special Investigation Headquarters. Verifying the facts regarding these individuals has also become the responsibility of the Special Investigation Headquarters.

The police investigation has already expanded to include local government officials and others. The Sejong Police Agency and Chungnam Police Agency's sudden search and seizure of Sejong City Hall and others in connection with speculation allegations in the Sejong National Industrial Complex on the previous day is related to this context. In fact, as of the 17th, among the 37 cases under police investigation, only 16 were related to the 3rd New Town, while more than half, 21 cases, involved allegations arising from local development projects. Circumstantial evidence is increasingly revealing that not only LH employees but also local government officials and local council members were involved in speculation.

The operation of the police reporting center to receive reports and tips on real estate speculation allegations is also adding vitality to the investigation. Since its opening on the 15th, 275 tips were received in just four days until the 18th. The police are known to have started fact-checking on at least 50 of these cases. Considering the intelligence independently obtained by each provincial police agency, the number of investigation targets could increase exponentially.

As the police investigation accelerates, it is expected that from next week, forced investigations such as search and seizure and summons related to individual suspects will follow. After receiving the investigation request from the Ministry of the Interior and Safety the previous day, the NIH issued a statement saying, "We will concentrate all investigative resources to investigate not only public officials but also proxy transactions involving relatives as quickly and strictly as possible," and "regardless of special prosecution discussions, we will investigate all speculation allegations without exception, regardless of status, and provide investigation results that the public can accept."

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