KINTEX CEO Lee Hwa-young, former deputy governor of Gyeonggi-do for peace, was arrested on charges of accepting billions of dollars in bribes from Ssangbangbang Group in exchange for helping with the North Korean economic cooperation project.
With the arrest of former Lieutenant Governor Lee, attention is focused on whether the investigation will expand to then-Governor Lee Jae-myung of the Democratic Party of Korea.
The Suwon District Court issued all the pre-arrest warrants requested by the prosecution on the morning of the 28th for the former lieutenant governor, who is accused of violating the bribery and political fund law under the Specific Crimes Aggravated Punishment Act, and vice-chairman Ssang Bul-bul B, who is accused of giving bribes. .
The court stated the reason for issuing the warrant, saying, "The criminal charges have been substantiated and there is a risk of destroying evidence."
Former Lieutenant Governor Lee served as the Vice Governor of Gyeonggi-do after completing his position as an outside director, from August 2018 to January 2020, and from September 2020 to the beginning of this year as the CEO of Kintex. He is accused of receiving 250 million won in bribes, including receiving payment.
He is also accused of falsely registering his close associate, Mr. C, as an employee of Ssangbang, and having him receive a wage of 90 million won.
Prosecutors said that the former Lieutenant Governor Lee Ssang Bul-Bul played a key role in drawing up agreements related to economic cooperation projects with the North Korean Asia-Pacific Peace Committee and the National Economic Cooperation Federation in Shenyang, China in January and May 2019 in exchange for bribes. I'm watching.
With this agreement, the Ssangbangbang affiliate received a business right contract for minerals including rare earths in North Korea, and the affiliate's stocks soared immediately after that.
Prosecutors are expected to focus on investigating the cost of bribes and other crimes against former Lieutenant Governor Lee, who has been arrested.
It is also possible to examine whether former Lieutenant Governor Lee independently formed a close relationship with Ssang-Bul, or whether the then-Governor, Jae-Myung Lee, was aware of the relationship.
Separately, the prosecution is also investigating the 'suspect of paying attorneys' fees', claiming that SsangBall Group paid 2 billion won in commissions for lawyers in the 2018 election law case of Lee through convertible bonds, etc.