Daejangdong Investigation Team's 'Split Dinner' Fact-Finding Report Submitted to Prime Minister's Office
by Choi Sukjin
Published 22 Nov.2021 18:12(KST)
If Violation of Infectious Disease Control Act Confirmed, Subject to 100,000 Won Fine
[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Seok-jin, Legal Affairs Specialist] The investigation team probing the Daejang-dong development and lobbying favoritism allegations has reported the findings of the so-called 'split dinner gathering' controversy to the Prime Minister's Office.
According to the legal community on the 22nd, the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office reported to the Supreme Prosecutors' Office last weekend after investigating the circumstances of the dinner gathering, the list of attendees, and whether they attended the 2nd and 3rd dinners, targeting the dedicated investigation team (led by Deputy Chief Prosecutor Kim Tae-hoon). The Supreme Prosecutors' Office then conveyed the related information to the Ministry of Justice.
The results of the prosecution's fact-finding investigation were reported to the General Administrative Policy Office within the Office for Government Policy Coordination, which is responsible for routine work monitoring, through the Ministry of Justice.
Earlier, on the 19th, the Office for Government Policy Coordination under the Prime Minister's Office ordered an investigation into the facts related to the 'split dinner gathering' as the controversy over violations of COVID-19 quarantine guidelines intensified. The Ministry of Justice instructed the Supreme Prosecutors' Office to verify the facts with the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office.
On the 4th, the day when the major shareholder of Hwacheon Daeyu, Kim Man-bae, and Nam Wook, the owner of Cheonhwa Dongin No. 4, were arrested, 16 members of the investigation team, including Yoo Kyung-pil, head of the Economic Crime Criminal Division at Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, prosecutors, and investigators, held a group dinner at a nearby barbecue restaurant.
They avoided social distancing regulations by splitting into rooms of eight people each, a so-called 'split' method. Kim Tae-hoon, the 4th Deputy Chief Prosecutor who oversees the investigation, is also known to have briefly stopped by to encourage the investigation team before leaving.
From the day after the dinner, seven members of the investigation team, including Chief Prosecutor Yoo, tested positive for COVID-19, causing disruptions to the investigation. Given that this was a critical period approaching the expiration of the detention period for Kim and Nam, there were criticisms both inside and outside the prosecution that the gathering was inappropriate.
Ultimately, the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office excluded Chief Prosecutor Yoo from this investigation and instead assigned Deputy Chief Prosecutor Jeong Yong-hwan of the Anti-Corruption and Violent Crime Division 1.
If violations of the Infectious Disease Control and Prevention Act are confirmed, attendees of the dinner will be fined 100,000 KRW, and restaurant operators will be fined 3,000,000 KRW.
Based on the information gathered by the General Administrative Policy Office, additional measures cannot be ruled out.
On the 19th, the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office excluded Economic Crime Criminal Division Chief Prosecutor Yoo Kyung-pil, who oversaw the investigation, from his duties.
Meanwhile, the investigation team indicted Kim, Nam, and Jeong Young-hak, the accountant and owner of Cheonhwa Dongin No. 5, on the same day their detention period expired. However, aside from the charges of breach of trust under the Specific Economic Crimes Act and bribery applied when requesting arrest warrants for Kim and others, the indictment did not include any investigation details regarding the so-called 'upper echelons,' leading to criticism that the indictment was 'half-hearted.'
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