Prosecution Summons Shin Hak-rim for 'Kim Man-bae False Interview'

The prosecution investigating the suspicion of a 'false interview' involving Kim Man-bae, the major shareholder of Hwacheon Daeyu Asset Management, a private contractor in the Daejang-dong development project, summoned Shin Hak-rim (64), former chairman of the Korean Federation of Journalists' Unions who interviewed Kim, on the 7th.

Former Press Union Chairman Shin Hak-rim [Image source=Yonhap News]

The Anti-Corruption Investigation Division 3 of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office (Chief Prosecutor Kang Baek-shin) is questioning Shin, who is accused of breach of trust and violation of the Anti-Graft Act, as a suspect this morning. This comes six days after they conducted a search and seizure of Shin's residence and office on the 1st.

Shin did not respond to reporters' questions upon arriving at the prosecution office. The prosecution plans to verify the circumstances under which the interview was conducted and whether there was any fabrication or collusion. The prosecution suspects that Shin conspired with Kim in the September 2021 presidential election period and conducted an interview containing unfavorable content about President Yoon Seok-yeol, who was then a presidential candidate of the People Power Party, and that the interview was broadcast through Newstapa on March 6 last year, three days before the election, in exchange for money.

The prosecution views this interview as an intentional 'fake news' aimed at shifting the responsibility for the Daejang-dong scandal from Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea (then Governor of Gyeonggi Province) and a rival of President Yoon, onto President Yoon. In the problematic interview, Kim stated that during the investigation of the 2011 Busan Savings Bank illegal loan case, former special prosecutor Park Young-soo, whom Kim introduced, played a role in protecting Yoon Seok-yeol (then head of the Criminal Investigation Division 2) and loan broker Jo Woo-hyung.

However, the prosecution is reported to have secured a statement from Jo indicating that 'he did not even know who Prosecutor Yoon Seok-yeol was at the time of the investigation.' Shin also claims that the 165 million won he received from Kim was not payment for the interview or report but was for a book he authored.

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