Suspicions of LH Executives' Speculation Investigated by Guksubon... Key Focus on Internal Information Usage Verification

Formation of Special Investigation Team for Large-Scale Real Estate Speculators
Expanded to Gwangmyeong-Siheung and 3 Other New Town Sites Planned

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-joo] The National Police Agency's National Investigation Headquarters (NIH) has launched a direct investigation into the speculation allegations involving employees of Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) in the Gwangmyeong and Siheung new towns that shook the public. The core of the police investigation is expected to be determining whether LH employees used insider information during the process of purchasing land.

The NIH has organized and deployed a "Special Investigation Unit for Real Estate Speculation Offenders" related to this case. The scope of the investigation has been expanded to see if similar cases exist in other new town development areas beyond the problematic Gwangmyeong and Siheung.

The investigation unit is led by Choi Seung-ryeol, head of the NIH Investigation Bureau, and is composed of the Anti-Corruption Investigation Division, Major Crime Investigation Division, Crime Intelligence Division, as well as the Anti-Corruption and Economic Crime Investigation Teams from three city and provincial police agencies overseeing the 3rd new town sites: Gyeonggi Nambu Police Agency, Gyeonggi Bukbu Police Agency, and Incheon Police Agency. Notably, the involvement of the Major Crime Investigation Division, which consists only of the top investigative elites within the police, reflects the public outrage over this case.

Each city and provincial police agency's Anti-Corruption and Economic Crime Investigation Team has formed dedicated investigation teams to strengthen crackdowns on ▲ misuse of insider information by public officials, ▲ illegal acquisition of real estate such as through name-trusts or violations of the Farmland Act, and ▲ organized and corporate-style illegal real estate transactions. In the case of the LH employee speculation allegations assigned to the Gyeonggi Nambu Police Agency, it has been designated as a NIH centralized command case, with the NIH overseeing the entire investigation process.

The most crucial aspect to uncover in this case is whether LH employees speculated knowing insider information. Currently, it is highly likely that the employees will deny this. Since such acts undermine the credibility of national real estate policies and disrupt market order, a clear and thorough verification of facts must be conducted, and if proven true, punishment must follow.

An NIH official emphasized, "Going forward, we will strengthen intelligence gathering centered on the 3rd new town sites, promptly investigate cases referred by the government joint investigation team by assigning them to dedicated investigation teams in the relevant city and provincial police agencies, and strictly crack down on real estate speculation offenders."