'Lee Daejangdong Privileges vs Yoon's Prosecution Solicitation'... Special Prosecutor Decides the Presidential Election

Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate (left), and Yoon Seok-youl, the People Power Party presidential candidate [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunju Lee] It is already widely anticipated that the outcome of this presidential election will be directly linked to the prosecution's investigation.

After the People Power Party's presidential candidate was decided as Yoon Seok-yeol, Hong Jun-pyo, who competed against him, disparaged the race as an "irrational election between corruption suspects," reflecting this perspective. The People Power Party is demanding the introduction of a special prosecutor regarding the Democratic Party's presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung's ‘Daejang-dong scandal.’ If the Democratic Party accepts this, it is highly likely that a special prosecutor will also be appointed for Yoon's ‘alleged report-for-prosecution scandal.’ Ultimately, if the so-called ‘double special prosecutors’ become a reality, it seems inevitable that the presidential election phase will be influenced by the progress of the special prosecutor's investigation. Ahn Cheol-soo, the People’s Party presidential candidate, and Sim Sang-jung, the Justice Party presidential candidate, are also advocating for double special prosecutors. This indicates the significant impact these two issues will have on candidates Lee Jae-myung and Yoon Seok-yeol.

Currently, the dedicated investigation team at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office is continuing to investigate the lobbying and preferential treatment allegations related to the Daejang-dong development, focusing on securing evidence. The core of the investigation is to identify the ‘upper-level’ figures who enabled the design of the Daejang-dong development. The opposition claims this points to the responsibility of candidate Lee, who was the former mayor of Seongnam. Recently, it was revealed that before a raid, former Seongnam Urban Development Corporation Planning Director Yoo Dong-gyu contacted Jeong Jin-sang, the deputy chief secretary of the Democratic Party’s election committee and a close aide to candidate Lee, intensifying suspicions of upper-level involvement. Even if candidate Lee is definitively linked to his aides' corruption through the Daejang-dong related trials before the election, the negative image could be repeatedly emphasized.

Candidate Yoon faces critical issues not only with the report-for-prosecution allegations but also with family and close aide corruption suspicions. The report-for-prosecution scandal centers on whether he was involved in delivering prosecution requests against ruling party politicians to the then Future United Party ahead of the April 15 general election last year while he was Prosecutor General. The case has been filed with the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) on suspicions that Yoon, along with prosecutor Son Jun-sung and lawmaker Kim Woong?who reportedly exchanged Telegram messages to draft the prosecution requests?were accomplices. The CIO requested an arrest warrant for prosecutor Son, which was dismissed, and both Son and lawmaker Kim have been summoned for investigation.

Yoon’s wife, Kim Geon-hee, is suspected of being involved in the Deutsche Motors stock manipulation case. Her exhibition planning company, ‘Kobana Contents,’ is also under investigation for allegedly receiving unfair sponsorships. Additionally, there is a connection to former Yongsan Tax Office chief Yoon Woo-jin, who is suspected of introducing legal professionals and tax authorities to ‘sponsor’ businessmen, which could cause some damage to candidate Yoon depending on the case developments. Meanwhile, the second trial regarding the cancellation lawsuit of Yoon’s two-month suspension penalty during his tenure as Prosecutor General is also underway.

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