Kim Man-bae Released After 6 Months... "Paid Shin Hak-rim for Book"

Kim Man-bae, the major shareholder of Hwacheon Daeyu, whose additional arrest warrant requested by the prosecution was dismissed, was released in the early morning of the 7th after six months of imprisonment.

Kim stated that the 165 million won he allegedly paid to former Press Union Chairman Shin Hak-rim in exchange for a false interview was given as payment for books.

In the early hours of the 7th, Kim Man-bae, the major shareholder of Hwacheon Daeyu, who was released from Seoul Detention Center upon the expiration of his detention period, is responding to questions from the press.

Kim, who was released from Seoul Detention Center around 12:03 a.m. that day, told the waiting press, "I sincerely apologize for causing concern and worry to many people."

When asked, "Is it true that you actually bought three books and paid 165 million won to Shin Hak-rim?" Kim replied, "Yes. Shin is an old acquaintance and an outstanding journalist. I believe his lifelong achievements have artistic value, so I bought those books."

Kim also said, "I met Shin for the first time in 15 to 20 years, and I did not know that our private conversation was being recorded," adding, "I think senior Shin Hak-rim should apologize to me."

Regarding questions about allegations of President Yoon Seok-yeol's interference in the Busan Savings Bank investigation, Kim said, "I do not think I was in such an influential position as the head of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office's Central Investigation Division."

When asked if the interview was intended to influence the presidential election, Kim responded, "While in detention, after being questioned by the prosecution, I heard from detention center officials that such content had been reported," and added, "I am not someone who has the ability to change even the presidential election situation."

The Criminal Division 22 of the Seoul Central District Court (Presiding Judge Lee Jun-cheol) conducted Kim's warrant hearing the previous day and decided not to issue a separate arrest warrant for Kim, dismissing the prosecution's request for an arrest warrant.

The prosecution requested the court on the 1st to issue an additional arrest warrant on charges including embezzlement and violation of the Conflict of Interest Prevention Act, as Kim's detention period for charges of concealing criminal proceeds from the Daejang-dong case, for which he was arrested and indicted on March 8, was expiring that day. At the time, the prosecution pointed to the recently surfaced so-called "false interview" allegations against Kim and emphasized the necessity of additional detention due to a high risk of evidence tampering.

This is the second time Kim has been arrested and released in connection with the Daejang-dong case. Kim was arrested and indicted in November 2021 on charges including breach of trust under the Specific Economic Crimes Act and was released in November last year due to the expiration of the detention period. However, Kim was re-arrested in February on charges including concealing criminal proceeds from the Daejang-dong project. He was indicted in March on charges applied in the arrest warrant and is currently undergoing trial before another division (Criminal Division 1) of the same court.

After Kim's arrest warrant was dismissed, the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office stated, "Serious evidence tampering has already been committed in various ways, and considering the significant risk of further evidence tampering, the court's decision is difficult to accept," adding, "We will do our best to ensure there are no disruptions in maintaining the prosecution and to uncover the substantive truth in the ongoing important investigations."

Meanwhile, the Anti-Corruption Investigation Division 3 of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office (Chief Prosecutor Kang Baek-shin), which is investigating the "false interview" allegations involving former Press Union Chairman Shin Hak-rim and Kim, conducted a search and seizure of Shin's residence and other locations on the 1st on charges of bribery and violation of the Improper Solicitation and Graft Act, followed by a search and seizure of Kim's residence and office the day before on charges of mediation of breach of trust and violation of the Improper Solicitation and Graft Act.

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