Prosecutors Expand Daejangdong Investigation from Special Privileges and Lobbying to Abuse of Power

Civic Groups File Complaints Against Yudonggyu and Others... Daejangdong Allegations Assigned to Special Investigation Team

[Asia Economy Reporter Baek Kyunghwan] The scope of the prosecution's investigation into the preferential treatment and lobbying allegations related to the Daejang-dong development is expanding to include suspicions of abuse of authority. Due to the controversy surrounding the recorded conversation of Hwang Mu-seong, the first president of Seongnam Urban Development Corporation (Seongnam UDC), some are suggesting the possibility that Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate, may also become a subject of investigation.

According to the legal community on the 27th, the Daejang-dong Allegations Special Investigation Team (Team Leader Kim Tae-hoon, 4th Deputy Chief) of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office received and began analyzing a recording submitted on the 25th containing a conversation between former president Hwang and former Seongnam UDC Development Project Director Yoo Han-gi on February 6, 2015, in the office. A member of the investigation team stated, "We cannot confirm the investigation plan," but added, "Verification of the authenticity of the people appearing in the recording comes first."

In the disclosed recording, former Director Yoo told former President Hwang, who refused to submit his resignation, "You don't know much, sir. You are naive," and said, "This was done under the mayor's orders. It's the mayor's words." Besides the mayor, the term 'Director Jeong' appears several times, currently believed to refer to candidate Lee and former Seongnam City Policy Director Jeong Jin-sang (currently General Deputy Director of Lee Jae-myung's campaign).

The investigation team plans to complete the analysis of the recording and proceed with additional investigations into the individuals appearing in it. Former Director Yoo, former Director Jeong, and others are targets to determine the involvement of the 'higher-ups.'

Former Director Yoo Dong-gyu, the core figure in the preferential treatment and lobbying allegations, is also a target. With about half of his term remaining and no particular disqualifications, when former President Hwang resigned, Yoo Dong-gyu served as acting president and swiftly pushed forward organizational restructuring, submission of the Daejang-dong development project plan, and selection of private contractors.

The investigation team’s indictment of former Director Yoo Dong-gyu on the 21st left room for the possibility of applying breach of trust charges. If additional breach of trust charges are confirmed during the recording investigation, it is expected to lead to an investigation of the remaining approval line.

In the legal community, if there was a direct order from candidate Lee behind former President Hwang’s resignation, it could be linked to abuse of authority or coercion charges. Previously, the civic group Judicial Examination Preparation Association (Sajunmo) filed a complaint with the Supreme Prosecutors' Office against former Director Yoo Dong-gyu, former Director Jeong, and others for abuse of authority, in the same context. On the same day, the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office assigned the case to the Economic Crime Criminal Division the day before. Currently, the Economic Crime Criminal Division is verifying the background and process of the Daejang-dong development project, the roles of candidate Lee, who was the mayor of Seongnam at the time, and breach of trust allegations within the Daejang-dong special investigation team.

However, since the investigation team was criticized for delayed and inadequate investigation early in the Daejang-dong incident by relying solely on the recordings of accountant Jeong Young-hak, it is expected that they will be cautious in investigating related persons. Earlier, after his resignation press conference, candidate Lee stated, "Former President Hwang was someone we brought in, and he came recommended by former Director Yoo Han-gi, an outsider," and added, "When he came to say goodbye saying he was quitting, I wondered why he was quitting. I remember feeling regretful."