Second LH Scandal Sparks... "55 Cases of Public Officials Including Members of the National Assembly Suspected of Speculation Reported"

Korea Anti-Corruption Commission Announces Interim Results of 'Public Officials' Duty-Related Speculation Reporting Period'
55 Cases Reported from March 4 to April 30... May Increase Until End of June
Land Purchased After Industrial Complex Development Information and Use of Non-Public Information for 'Share Splitting'
Acquisition of 1.3 Billion Won Unregistered Farmland, Mirroring 'LH Scandal'... Concerns Over 'Second LH Scandal'

Representatives from various regions and residents belonging to the National Solidarity Countermeasure Council for Public Housing Districts (Gongjeonhyeop) held an emergency press conference on March 10 in front of the land suspected of speculative investment by LH employees in Gwarim-dong, Siheung-si, Gyeonggi Province, condemning LH Corporation and urging the complete cancellation of the 3rd New Town public housing districts. / Siheung - Photo by Kim Hyunmin kimhyun81@

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] The Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission (ACRC), which has been operating a focused reporting period for public officials' job-related speculative acts since March 4 following the Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) scandal, announced on the 6th that it had received 55 reports of speculation suspicions by the end of last month. Speculative acts similar in nature to those during the 'LH scandal,' such as joint land purchases in the form of 'share splitting' by abusing undisclosed information, were detected, and among the reported individuals, members of the National Assembly are also included. Since the records are up to the 30th of last month, the number of reports may increase until the end of next month.

The list of those reported for speculation this time includes not only members of the National Assembly but also local government heads, local council members, employees of Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH), and employees of Seoul Housing and Communities Corporation (SH Corporation). To protect the reporters, the ACRC did not disclose the identities of the reported individuals. An ACRC official said, "We understand that new cases different from the LH scandal have also been detected," adding, "Since these matters are being referred and sent to investigative agencies, it is difficult to disclose specific subjects and suspicion details externally at this time."

Various reported cases raising concerns of a 'second LH scandal' have been detected. According to the ACRC, suspicions have been received regarding land purchases using information about the establishment of industrial complexes in specific areas, or passing information obtained during activities of relevant standing committees to family or acquaintances to purchase real estate. There are also suspicions of jointly purchasing urban planning facility sites in the form of share splitting using undisclosed information, establishing corporations under family names to concentrate purchases of villas in development areas, and acquiring farmland worth about 1.3 billion KRW in areas with no personal ties.

By type, among the 55 cases, 35 cases (63.6%) involved speculation suspicions using internal information, 6 cases (10.9%) involved suspicions of providing special favors to third parties, and 2 cases (3.6%) involved suspicions of holding land in violation of the Farmland Act. Of the 55 cases, 9 were referred (6 cases) or sent (3 cases) to the Government Joint Special Investigation Headquarters, and 1 case was sent to the Supreme Prosecutors' Office. The remaining 31 cases are under investigation. Among the cases where investigations have been completed, 14 cases that were not referred or sent to external agencies were judged to have no particular charges, and the ACRC concluded the investigations. An ACRC official explained the reason why 9 out of 10 cases were sent to the Special Investigation Headquarters and 1 case to the Supreme Prosecutors' Office separately: "One case is under prosecution investigation, so it was sent to the Supreme Prosecutors' Office to avoid duplicate investigations."

According to the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission Act, if a public official is found to have gained benefits by using internal information, they can be sentenced to up to 7 years in prison and fined up to 70 million KRW. Property gains can be confiscated and recovered.