Prosecutors May Summon Jeong Jin-sang Within the Year... Will the Investigation into 'Daejang-dong Higher-ups' Regain Momentum?

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyung-min] After the death of Yuhan-gi, former head of the Development Business Division at Seongnam Urban Development Corporation, the prosecution, which had not shown any clear investigative progress, is now deliberating on the timing to summon and investigate Jeong Jin-sang, deputy chief of the secretariat of the Democratic Party's presidential campaign committee, another key figure in the 'upper-level investigation.'

Legal circles highly anticipate that the prosecution will summon Deputy Chief Jeong for investigation within this year. With the presidential election just over 70 days away, it is also expected that the prosecution will summon and investigate Deputy Chief Jeong within this year to minimize any impact on the election.

According to legal sources on the 21st, the dedicated investigation team at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office (led by Deputy Chief Prosecutor Kim Tae-hoon) is considering summoning Deputy Chief Jeong for questioning regarding allegations of breach of trust related to the Daejang-dong development project.

Deputy Chief Jeong has drawn attention for being involved not only in the Daejang-dong development project but also in various suspicions related to Seongnam City. He served as the Policy Director of Seongnam City during the Daejang-dong project. Additionally, he was included in the approval line for various Daejang-dong project documents, including the 2016 report on changes to the development plan and implementation plan approval for the Seongnam Pangyo-Daejang urban development project.

Deputy Chief Jeong is also suspected of being involved in the mid-term resignation of Hwang Mu-seong, former president of Seongnam Urban Development Corporation. Hwang previously released a recorded audio file of a conversation with former head Yuhan-gi, claiming that there was pressure from 'upper levels' during his resignation process. The recording contains content where former head Yuhan-gi urges resignation, citing instructions from higher-ups including 'Director Jeong' and Yoo Dong-gyu, then Planning Director of Seongnam Urban Development Corporation.

The prosecution had considered summoning Deputy Chief Jeong for questioning last week after securing custody of former head Yuhan-gi, but postponed the investigation of Deputy Chief Jeong due to the unexpected variable of former head Yuhan-gi's extreme choice.

While the prosecution deems the investigation of Deputy Chief Jeong essential, the schedule and method of the investigation have not yet been decided. Prior to this, the prosecution is focusing on securing related testimonies by investigating Ko Jae-hwan, CEO of Seongnam's Tteul, which was responsible for implementing the Daejang-dong development.

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