Police Decide Not to Prosecute Former Minister Kim Hyun-mi in 'Yeoncheon Real Estate Suspicion' Case

Former Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Kim Hyun-mi. / Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-ju] The police have decided not to prosecute former Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Kim Hyun-mi and her family, who were accused of real estate speculation.

The Anti-Corruption Economic Crime Investigation Unit of the Northern Gyeonggi Provincial Police Agency announced on the 14th that they decided not to prosecute four individuals, including former Minister Kim and her family, regarding allegations of violations of the Farmland Act, Real Name Real Estate Act, and Anti-Corruption Act, citing lack of evidence.

The civic group Judicial Examination Preparation Students' Association filed a complaint with the police in June, alleging that Kim and her husband purchased farmland in Jangnam-myeon, Yeoncheon-gun, Gyeonggi Province in 2012, built a detached house, but did not actually farm the land, thus violating the Farmland Act. It was later confirmed that during her tenure as minister, the house registered under her husband's name was transferred to Kim's younger brother.

In response, the police explained, "The statute of limitations has expired for the charge of illegal acquisition of farmland, and it was confirmed that there was no illegal leasing or conversion." The police also judged that it was difficult to consider that former Minister Kim used confidential information obtained through her duties to have the property acquired by her siblings.

However, the police added that the failure to cultivate some of the farmland was confirmed to be subject to administrative sanctions and notified the relevant local government authorities accordingly.

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