"576 Individuals Under Investigation for 'Real Estate Speculation'... Significant Expansion of Investigation Personnel and Targets (Comprehensive)"

10 Members of National Assembly and Their Families Under Investigation
Prosecutors Cooperate Smoothly... "Police Should Play Their Own Role"

Nam Gu-jun, Chief of the National Investigation Headquarters of the National Police Agency, is giving a briefing on the investigation of the Government Joint Special Investigation Headquarters at the National Police Agency in Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, on the 30th. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-joo] The government joint special investigation headquarters (Special Investigation Headquarters, SIH), which is investigating real estate speculation allegations triggered by Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH), will significantly increase its personnel and expand the scope of investigation to include planned real estate speculation.

Nam Gu-jun, head of the National Police Agency's National Investigation Headquarters (NIH) and the Special Investigation Headquarters, stated at a briefing on the 30th, "As speculation allegations involving LH executives and public officials continue to arise, there is a growing demand for stronger crackdowns," adding, "We will elevate the investigation heads of the metropolitan and provincial police agencies to the rank of senior superintendent and significantly expand the investigative personnel to 1,560, which is double the current number."

Accordingly, 194 personnel will be added to the violent crime investigation units and cyber investigation units of each metropolitan and provincial police agency, and special investigation teams will be formed at 149 first-class police stations. The scope of investigation will also be expanded from speculation using insider information to include planned real estate speculation such as fraudulent real estate. Head Nam said, "We will expand the investigation scope not only to speculation using insider information and transactions under borrowed names but also to planned real estate speculation," expressing a strong determination by stating, "We will approach the investigation with the attitude of eradicating real estate speculation once and for all."

As of the morning of the same day, the SIH is conducting preliminary investigations and investigations on 125 cases involving 576 individuals. Compared to 110 cases and 536 individuals as of the 26th, the number of subjects has increased by 40.

Classified by investigation clues, 18 cases started from complaints by civic groups, 6 cases were requested for investigation by other agencies such as the government joint investigation team and local governments, and 93 cases were recognized and investigated independently by the police.

Among the investigation subjects, there are 35 LH employees, 94 public officials, and 26 local council members. Notably, 10 individuals including current members of the National Assembly and their families have come under investigation. Among them, 5 members were reported or petitioned regarding their own real estate allegations, 3 cases involve family members being reported, and 2 cases were reported but are said to be unrelated to real estate speculation allegations.

The SIH plans to make detention investigations the principle for public officials’ insider information speculation acts and actively pursue the recovery of unjust profits. In fact, the court approved the seizure preservation request for a Pocheon city public official, the first detention case by the SIH, freezing land and buildings worth about 8 billion won. Choi Seung-ryeol, head of the NIH Investigation Bureau, stated, "It is possible to confiscate and recover not only when a public official buys land using insider information but also in cases of acquisition by a third party within the same scope."

The SIH explained that cooperation with the prosecution is also proceeding smoothly. Regarding the prosecution’s involvement in this investigation, Head Nam said, "We have cooperated with the prosecution from the early stages of the investigation and proceeded with communication such as warrant execution in the case of the Pocheon city public official," adding, "Although the prosecution is involved, we see that the prosecution has its own domain. We will sufficiently consult and the police will perform their roles accordingly."

Head Nam also emphasized, "We will detain and investigate corrupt public officials involved in speculation and ensure that unjust profits are definitely recovered," and added, "As the responsible investigative agency, the NIH will proceed with the investigation swiftly and produce results that the public can sympathize with."

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