Mun Heung-sik, Who Fled Abroad Immediately After Gwangju Building Collapse Disaster, Detained in Holding Cell

No Response to All Reporters' Questions

Police to Proceed with Investigation at Dawn

Moon Heung-sik, who fled overseas before being booked by the police immediately after the collapse disaster of a demolished building in Dong-gu, Gwangju Metropolitan City, and returned to the country after 91 days, arrived at the Gwangju Seobu Police Station.

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Yoon Jamin] Moon Heung-sik, former chairman of the 5·18 Detained and Injured Association, who fled overseas before being booked by the police immediately after the collapse disaster of a demolished building in Dong-gu, Gwangju Metropolitan City, and returned to the country after 91 days, was taken into custody.

It is expected that the investigation into redevelopment area corruption, which had been stagnant, will gain momentum.

According to the Gwangju Metropolitan Police Agency on the 11th, Moon was taken into custody at the Gwangju Western Police Station detention center around 10:20 p.m. that day.

The police executed an arrest warrant immediately upon his arrival at Incheon Airport at 6:01 p.m., secured his custody, confiscated his mobile phone and belongings, and promptly transferred him to Gwangju.

To prevent the spread of COVID-19 infection, the detention center was cleared and he was admitted alone.

Upon arrival at the Gwangju Western Police Station, Moon hurried inside without responding to any questions such as "Do you admit the charges?" or "Are you sorry to the bereaved families?"

Moon is suspected of receiving hundreds of millions of won in exchange for arranging contracts with the association four to five times between 2017 and 2019, along with Lee (73), who was previously indicted and detained.

He left for Seattle, USA, on the 13th, four days after the building collapse disaster on June 9th, which resulted in 17 casualties.

He was identified as having exerted influence over the entire redevelopment project, came under police investigation, and reportedly fled the country just before being booked.

As Moon’s escape prolonged, the police investigation into redevelopment association corruption allegations made little progress.

After securing Moon’s custody 91 days after his flight, the police plan to focus on confirming evidence of his involvement in various redevelopment-related contracts and proving the charges as soon as daylight breaks.

Meanwhile, at around 4:22 p.m. on June 9th, a building under demolition at the Hakdong 4 District redevelopment site in Dong-gu, Gwangju, collapsed and crushed a city bus on the road, killing nine people and seriously injuring eight.

Mr. Moon Heung-sik, who fled overseas before being booked by the police immediately after the collapse disaster of a demolished building in Dong-gu, Gwangju Metropolitan City, and returned to the country after 91 days, arrived at the Gwangju Western Police Station.

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