Lee Jae-myung "Not sure where it was taken, but seems like a lot of effort"
Ruling party files ethics complaint against Kim Yong-pan, demands resignation from assembly seat
On the afternoon of the 20th, lawyer Jang Young-ha held a press conference at a law firm office in Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, explaining the reasons for trusting Park Cheol-min's fact verification documents. / Photo by Yonhap News
[Asia Economy Reporter Na Yeeun] Park Cheolmin, who has alleged Gyeonggi Province Governor Lee Jae-myung's involvement with organized crime, stated that "the money in the photo is definitely money that went to Governor Lee," in response to suspicions that the 'bundle of cash photo' presented as evidence is fake.
Earlier, on the 18th, Kim Yongpan, a member of the People Power Party, claimed at the National Assembly's Public Administration and Security Committee's Gyeonggi Province audit held at the Gyeonggi Provincial Government office that "the International Mafia faction supported Governor Lee with nearly 2 billion won," revealing Park's fact verification statement, testimony, and the photo of the cash bundle that Park allegedly delivered to Governor Lee.
A photo of a stack of money posted by Mr. Park on his Facebook on November 21, 2018. / Photo by Mr. Park on Facebook capture
However, Han Byungdo, a member of the Democratic Party, revealed that "Representative Kim received the tip from Park," and that the photo of the cash bundle shown at the audit is identical to a photo Park had already posted on his Facebook account in November 2018. Because of this, some have questioned the authenticity of Park's claim that he delivered 2 billion won to Governor Lee.
In response, lawyer Jang Youngha, who met with Park currently in custody, held a press conference on the afternoon of the 20th at his office in Sujeong-gu, Seongnam City, Gyeonggi Province, and disclosed an additional fact verification statement containing Park's claims.
In the disclosed fact verification statement, Park explained, "The reason I posted the photo of the bundle of cash as if I earned the money was because (during the process of delivering cash to Governor Lee) a large sum of money came into my possession, and I wanted to boast."
Lawyer Jang said, "Park himself had no money, so he could not have taken the photo of the cash bundle with his own money," adding, "Park posted it on Facebook out of vanity and showmanship."
He continued, "According to Park, Lee Junseok, CEO of Komatrade, told Park, who was an employee at the time, to deliver the bundle of cash in the photo to Governor Lee," and "Park describes the situation at that time in detail to an extent that makes it difficult to consider it fabricated."
Gyeonggi Province Governor Lee Jae-myung is taking the oath as a witness during the National Assembly's Public Administration and Security Committee's audit of Gyeonggi Province held at the Gyeonggi Provincial Government Office on the morning of the 18th. / Photo by Yonhap News
Regarding these suspicions, Governor Lee dismissed them with a hollow laugh during the audit, saying, "Really, there is no comedy like this comedy." He added, "I don't know where the photo was taken, but it seems a lot of effort was made," and "The content was very interesting. If it was given in cash, does that mean the rest was given by check? If it was by check, wouldn't it be easy to verify?" he argued.
Meanwhile, the Democratic Party plans to file a complaint against Representative Kim with the National Assembly Ethics Committee, demanding his resignation and expulsion from the People Power Party, and has also announced legal action against lawyer Jang.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
