Prosecutors Summon Former Minister of Industry Baek Woon-gyu Over 'Blacklist' Allegations

According to the investigation results, the prosecution is likely to speed up the investigation process

[Asia Economy Reporter Jang Sehee] The prosecution, investigating allegations of a blacklist at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, is currently summoning and questioning former Minister Baek Woon-gyu.

According to the legal community on the 9th, the Criminal Division 6 of the Seoul Eastern District Prosecutors' Office (Chief Prosecutor Choi Hyung-won) summoned former Minister Baek as a suspect this morning.

The prosecution had conducted a search and seizure of former Minister Baek's residence and Hanyang University laboratory on the 19th of last month, securing materials including email records.

The Liberty Korea Party, the predecessor of the People Power Party, filed a complaint in January 2019 against former Minister Baek and former Vice Minister Lee In-ho on charges of abuse of authority and obstruction of the exercise of rights. They alleged that at the time, Park, a director at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, pressured the presidents of four power plants, whose terms had not yet ended, to resign, resulting in their collective resignation, raising suspicions of a blacklist.

Meanwhile, as the prosecution has investigated a key figure in the blacklist allegations case, there are expectations that the investigation will accelerate going forward.

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