Explosive National Assembly Audit of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office... Fiery Clash Over Kim Yong's Arrest

Democratic Party Holds Emergency Morning Lawmakers' Meeting... Uncertainty Over Normal Progress of National Audit
Prosecutors Urgently Arrest Lee Jae-myung's Closest Aide for Receiving 800 Million Won in Illegal Political Funds

Members of the Democratic Party of Korea are holding a picket in front of the Central Party Office in Yeouido, Seoul, on the 19th, condemning the prosecution's attempt to search the Democratic Research Institute.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Kyung-jun] As the National Assembly audit of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office is scheduled for the 20th, the ruling and opposition parties are expected to engage in fierce disputes over the prosecution's arrest of Kim Yong, deputy director of the Democratic Research Institute and a close aide to Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, on charges of violating the Political Funds Act, and the search and seizure conducted at the Democratic Party headquarters where the Democratic Research Institute is located.

The National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee will conduct the audit of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office on the same day. Intense debates are anticipated regarding the prosecution's investigation of Deputy Director Kim during the audit.

The Democratic Party of Korea is expected to claim the prosecution's investigation as "political oppression" and question Prosecutor General Lee Won-seok about the background and circumstances of the investigation.

On the other hand, the People Power Party is expected to argue that the substance of various suspicions surrounding Lee Jae-myung is beginning to emerge and will urge a swift investigation.

However, since the Democratic Party strongly opposed the prosecution's search and seizure attempt and halted part of the audit the previous day, it is uncertain whether the audit will proceed normally on this day.

The Democratic Party plans to hold an emergency party members' meeting at the National Assembly in the morning to discuss countermeasures against the search and seizure and whether to boycott the audit.

The Anti-Corruption Investigation Division 3 of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office (Chief Prosecutor Kang Baek-shin) arrested Deputy Director Kim on the previous day on charges of receiving illegal presidential election funds amounting to over 800 million won. The special favor suspicions related to the Daejang-dong development project have expanded into allegations of illegal presidential election funds.

The prosecution is reported to have detected circumstances in which Deputy Director Kim demanded 2 billion won in presidential election preparation funds from Yoo Dong-gyu, former acting president of Seongnam Urban Development Corporation, in February of last year.

Former acting president Yoo conveyed Deputy Director Kim's demand to Nam Wook, a lawyer and owner of Cheonhwa-dongin No. 4, an affiliate of Hwacheon Daeyu Asset Management, a private business operator in the Daejang-dong project. Nam is said to have raised over 800 million won and delivered it to Deputy Director Kim through lawyers Jeong Min-yong and former acting president Yoo between April and August of last year.

Deputy Director Kim is considered a close aide to Lee Jae-myung along with Jeong Jin-sang, chief of political coordination at the Democratic Party leader's office. When suspicions surrounding the Daejang-dong development surfaced last year, Lee himself mentioned the two, saying, "If they are close aides, they should be people like Jeong Jin-sang and Kim Yong."

However, immediately after his arrest, Deputy Director Kim issued a statement saying, "The reality of the prosecution's fabrication suspicions, which had been circulating as rumors, is being revealed," and declared, "No prosecution for the guilty, prosecution for the innocent."

Considering the 48-hour detention limit, the prosecution is expected to request an arrest warrant for Deputy Director Kim within the day.

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