Prosecutors and Police's 3 Years 3 Months 'Targeted Investigation' Against Lee Jae-myung Ends with 'No Charges'... Controversy Over Selective Prosecution

[Asia Economy (Suwon) = Reporter Lee Young-gyu] Lee Jae-myung, Governor of Gyeonggi Province, was cleared of charges after 3 years and 3 months regarding allegations that he received money from companies under the pretext of advertising fees while he was the owner of Seongnam FC.

The Bundang Police Station in Gyeonggi announced on the 7th that it had decided not to indict Governor Lee Jae-myung, who had been under investigation for third-party bribery charges.

Governor Lee had been under police investigation for allegedly having Doosan, Naver, and others pay over 16 billion won in advertising fees and other charges to Seongnam FC, of which he was the owner during his tenure as mayor of Seongnam.

Earlier, the Bareunmirae Party, the predecessor of the People Power Party, filed a complaint against Lee Jae-myung, then mayor of Seongnam, in June 2018 before the Gyeonggi gubernatorial election, accusing him of these charges.

In the complaint, the Bareunmirae Party stated, "Seongnam FC received financial support in the form of advertising fees from six local companies including Doosan Construction (4.2 billion won), Naver (4 billion won), Nonghyup (3.6 billion won), and Bundang CHA Hospital (3.3 billion won)." They further claimed, "Around this time, the hospital site in Jeongja-dong, Bundang, which Doosan had left unattended, was rezoned to allow construction of their headquarters, and Naver obtained a permit to build a second headquarters, indicating a quid pro quo."

However, Governor Lee has consistently denied the allegations since the issue first arose. In April, at a signing ceremony for a business agreement between Gyeonggi Province and five local citizen professional soccer teams, he lamented, "I have been under investigation as a suspect for several years because I received many sponsorship advertisements from local companies while I was the owner of Seongnam FC. It is truly regrettable."

A police official stated, "After thoroughly reviewing written responses and all investigated matters, we decided not to indict. We conducted a meticulous investigation into whether bribery charges could be applied among the accused (Governor Lee), Seongnam FC, and the large corporations involved, but we found no evidence."

Meanwhile, a broadcasting station reported on the same day that the prosecution had conducted a targeted investigation against Governor Lee Jae-myung.

The broadcast revealed some of the correspondence exchanged about 50 times with Lee Jun-seok, former CEO of Comart Trade, who is currently serving a prison sentence at Seoul Detention Center after being sentenced for operating an online gambling site in March.

Lee Jun-seok was a Democratic Party member during Lee Jae-myung’s tenure as mayor of Seongnam and operated a business with about 80 employees in Seongnam.

According to the report, Lee Jun-seok disclosed, "I was summoned by the Violent Crimes Division of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office on overseas gambling charges, but the prosecution showed little interest in that case. Instead, they pressured me with investigations regarding alleged misconduct by Lee Jae-myung, then mayor of Seongnam, without presenting any evidence."

He added, "The prosecutors said, 'We have thoroughly checked your connections with famous figures in the Seongnam area in various ways. You still have a chance, so why not confess everything now and go home quickly?' When I asked who they meant by 'famous figures' since I didn’t know, the prosecutor replied, 'Why ask when you already know? The person who often uses social media and likes soccer (presumed to be Lee Jae-myung) is the one we are talking about.'"

He further stated, "I told them, 'There seems to be some misunderstanding. I was a Democratic Party member and had business dealings in Seongnam, so I did interact with him (Lee Jae-myung) and other figures, but there was no relationship involving solicitation or lobbying.'"

Lee Jun-seok particularly recounted, "When I said I never provided financial or manpower support to Lee Jae-myung’s side, Prosecutor Kim suddenly changed his tone and said, 'Do you think I’m a joke? I’m the one asking questions. You just answer. You think I’m being nice? I’ll make sure you serve at least 15 years in prison. I’ll have your wife, brother, and mother all arrested as accomplices. I’ll investigate your company thoroughly and make sure you get media coverage. You’ll be on trial for 3 to 4 years and spend hundreds of millions on legal fees.' He was very agitated," describing the situation at the time.

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