Prosecutors to Verify Facts Regarding Nam Wook's 'Daejang-dong Courtroom Revelations'

Lawyer Nam Wook [Photo by Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyung-min] The prosecution plans to verify the facts regarding various revelations made by private businessman Nam Wook, who was arrested and then released in connection with the Daejang-dong development project preferential treatment case.

A prosecution official told reporters on the 22nd that regarding the new allegations Nam raised the previous day targeting Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, and his close associates, "We plan to objectively verify the facts of all allegations raised, including court testimonies, during the investigation process."

Nam was released at midnight the previous day after his detention period expired, marking his release after one year. He appeared as a witness at the trial held that morning and delivered significant testimonies. Regarding 'Cheonhwa-dongin No. 1,' which holds 30% of the private shares in the Daejang-dong project, he claimed, "I heard from Kim Man-bae that it was Lee Jae-myung's share." He also stated that at least 400 million won in money and goods were delivered to Lee’s side around the time of the 2014 local elections when Lee was re-elected as mayor of Seongnam.

He further alleged that most of the 352 million won, which former Seongnam Urban Development Corporation Planning Director Yoo Dong-gyu was known to have received as bribes, flowed to Jeong Jin-sang, chief political coordinator of the Democratic Party leader’s office and Lee’s closest aide, and Kim Yong, deputy director of the Democratic Research Institute.

Nam also testified that before the 2018 Gyeonggi Province governor election, Kim Man-bae delivered 15 million won monthly to Jeong and Kim through former Director Yoo.

Since all of Nam’s testimonies are related to Lee, if the prosecution detects criminal charges through fact verification, Lee will be directly placed under investigation.

The prosecution views the Daejang-dong case as an issue where Jeong and Kim, leveraging the local government power of Lee as mayor, privatized the project, colluded with private businessmen, and pursued personal gain. However, regarding direct investigation of Lee, they expressed caution, stating, "The need for investigation refers to Jeong, who is detained, and does not imply that other investigation targets are necessary."

Meanwhile, the Anti-Corruption Investigation Division 1 of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office (Chief Prosecutor Eom Hee-jun), which detained Jeong, sent prosecutors and investigators to the Gyeonggi Provincial Government office where Jeong worked in the afternoon to conduct a search and seizure of email records exchanged between Jeong and provincial government employees during his tenure as policy director of the governor’s secretariat from 2018 to 2021. This search and seizure is aimed at securing physical evidence to prove the charges against Jeong, who was detained on the 19th.

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