Prosecution Fails to Secure Custody of Park Young-soo in '5 Billion Club' Case... Difficulty Proving Quid Pro Quo Relationship

Former Lawmaker Kwak Sang-do Also Fails to Have 'Quid Pro Quo' Recognized in First Trial
Without New 'Smoking Gun,' Progress in 5 Billion Club Investigation Seems Difficult

The prosecution investigating the '50 Billion Club' allegations related to the Daejang-dong development has failed to secure the custody of former special prosecutor Park Young-soo. This has put a halt to the investigation into the 50 Billion Club allegations, which had gained momentum during Park's summons and questioning.

Former special prosecutor Park Young-soo, who is suspected of receiving bribes in exchange for helping private developers in Daejang-dong, known as the so-called '5 Billion Club,' is leaving the Seoul Detention Center in Uiwang, Gyeonggi Province, after his arrest warrant was dismissed on the 30th.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

On the 30th, Yoo Chang-hoon, the chief judge in charge of warrants at the Seoul Central District Court, dismissed the arrest warrant for former special prosecutor Park, who is accused of bribery under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes.

Judge Yoo stated, "There is room for factual and legal dispute regarding the testimonies of related parties, which are the main evidence of the charges, about whether the suspect's duties were involved, whether the actual receipt of money or goods occurred, and whether the promise of providing money or goods was established," adding, "At this point, detaining the suspect would excessively restrict the suspect's right to defense."

The arrest warrant for Yang Jae-sik (57), a close aide of former special prosecutor Park and also accused of the same charges, was also dismissed. Lee Min-soo, the chief judge in charge of warrants at the same court, explained the reason for dismissal, saying, "At this stage, it is difficult to see that the suspect poses a risk of destroying evidence or fleeing beyond the scope of exercising the right to defense."

With the court citing concerns about restricting the right to defense and the existence of disputes as reasons for dismissing the arrest warrants for both individuals, future investigations are expected to face difficulties.

The court appears to have judged that the evidence secured by the prosecution regarding former special prosecutor Park's criminal charges does not conclusively prove the preferential treatment provided in the Daejang-dong development project to private developers such as Kim Man-bae, the major shareholder of Hwacheon Daeyu Asset Management, nor the corresponding compensation.

Earlier, in February of this year, the court sentenced former lawmaker Kwak Sang-do, who was also suspected of involvement in the 50 Billion Club along with former special prosecutor Park, to a fine in the first trial but did not acknowledge the element of compensation.

Ultimately, unless the prosecution secures new smoking-gun evidence beyond what it currently holds, it will be difficult not only to secure custody of former special prosecutor Park but also to obtain a guilty verdict in the forthcoming 50 Billion Club trial.

Former special prosecutor Park is accused of receiving benefits worth about 20 billion KRW and two detached houses from private developers including lawyer Nam Wook in exchange for facilitating Woori Bank's participation in the Seongnam E-Deul consortium and issuing a letter of intent for project financing (PF) loans related to the Daejang-dong development project during his tenure as chairman of Woori Bank's board in November-December 2014.

He is also accused of receiving 30 million KRW in cash from lawyer Nam as election funds for the 2015 Korean Bar Association presidential election. Additionally, he is accused of receiving 50 million KRW from Kim Man-bae and others as a bribe for requesting the issuance of the letter of intent and promising 5 billion KRW in the future.

The core of the 50 Billion Club allegation is that the members involved in the suspicion agreed to receive 5 billion KRW each as compensation for assisting in the Daejang-dong development process. However, since the court has not recognized the existence of this compensation relationship itself, the prosecution currently appears to have no sharp measures.

The prosecution's plan to move on to investigate other suspects mentioned as members of the 50 Billion Club after securing custody of former special prosecutor Park has also been disrupted.

After the dismissal of the arrest warrants for former special prosecutor Park and former special prosecutor aide Yang, the investigation team stated, "Given the testimonies of multiple related parties and objective evidence supporting them, it is difficult to accept the court's reasons for dismissal in a situation where the receipt and promise of money or goods as a bribe are sufficiently recognized," adding, "We will consider reapplying for the arrest warrant after supplementary investigations." However, whether they can secure clear evidence acceptable to the court remains uncertain.

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