Ewhayeong to Appear Before Prosecutors on the 15th for Investigation into Ssangbangwool's North Korea Remittance Allegations

Former Gyeonggi Province Deputy Governor for Peace Lee Hwa-young [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyung-min] Lee Hwa-young, former Deputy Governor of Gyeonggi Province, who was arrested and indicted on charges of receiving bribes worth hundreds of millions of won from Ssangbangwool Group, is scheduled to appear before the prosecution on the 15th to be investigated regarding the allegations of Ssangbangwool's remittance to North Korea.

According to the legal community on the 10th, the Criminal Division 6 of Suwon District Prosecutors' Office (Chief Prosecutor Kim Young-nam) recently notified Lee, who is currently detained at Suwon Detention Center, to appear for questioning.

Lee is the person suspected of connecting a phone call between Kim Sung-tae, former chairman of Ssangbangwool Group, and Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea. The prosecution suspects that Ssangbangwool Group paid the $5 million USD for the smart farm support project that Gyeonggi Province was supposed to provide to North Korea in 2019, and is investigating the matter. In particular, attention is being paid to the fact that Lee, a former outside director of Ssangbangwool Group, was in charge of inter-Korean exchange and cooperation projects.

The prosecution is expected to summon Lee to intensively question him about the discussions at that time. It is known that attorney Hyun Geun-taek, who is representing Kim Yong, former deputy director of the Democratic Research Institute and a close aide to Representative Lee, will be present during the investigation. Lee recently issued a statement emphasizing, "I was completely unaware of any remittance to North Korea by Ssangbangwool, and there is no reason for Ssangbangwool to provide money to North Korea on behalf of Gyeonggi Province," adding, "There were no North Korea-related activities by Gyeonggi Province that required remittance to North Korea." He also denied the allegations that he connected the call between former Chairman Kim and Representative Lee after agreeing to have North Korea cover the smart farm costs on behalf of Gyeonggi Province, calling them groundless.