"Claimed 'Will Help with Lawsuit'... This Judge Says 'Not in a Position to Argue'"
Civil Group Reports to Corruption Investigation Office for Alleged Violation of 'Brokerage and Anti-Graft Act'
Constitutional Court Justice Lee Young-jin is arriving at the Constitutional Court in Jongno-gu, Seoul, on the morning of the 12th. [Photo by Yonhap News]
[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Kyung-jun] Lee Young-jin, a Constitutional Court Justice accused of 'golf entertainment allegations,' went to work on the 12th, ten days after the allegations were raised. Justice Lee was diagnosed with COVID-19 on the 6th and was in self-quarantine until the day before.
On that day, Justice Lee arrived at the Constitutional Court in Jongno-gu and entered the building without responding to the questions from the waiting press, maintaining a stern expression.
Last October, Justice Lee played golf with A, a junior from his hometown who arranged the golf meeting, B, a self-employed businessman who is a high school friend of A, and C, a lawyer. Afterwards, they had dinner at a restaurant run by A.
All golf expenses and meals were covered by the self-employed businessman B. The golf expenses amounted to about 1.2 million won, and it is known that they drank about two bottles of wine costing approximately 300,000 won per bottle during the meal.
The issue arose when B talked about his divorce lawsuit with his wife during the meal with Justice Lee, and it was reported to the media that Justice Lee mentioned, in effect, that he knew a family court chief judge and would help with the lawsuit.
In a previous explanation, Justice Lee stated, "B talked about the divorce lawsuit, so I only said that it seemed like a case that should be legally handled with the assistance of a lawyer," adding, "I was not in a position to comment on the ongoing trial, and I have not met or known the details since that day."
B also claimed through C that he gave Justice Lee 5 million won in cash and golf clothing, but Justice Lee said, "The clothes and money are matters between B and the lawyer."
A civic group filed a complaint against Justice Lee with the High-ranking Officials' Crime Investigation Unit (PCC) on the 10th for violations of the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes related to bribery and the Improper Solicitation and Graft Act. Although violations of the Improper Solicitation and Graft Act are not subject to PCC investigation, if they are directly related to bribery charges, they can be investigated together.
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