Prosecutors Indict Kwak Sang-do and Son in '5 Billion Club' Bribery Conspiracy (Comprehensive)

Former People Power Party lawmaker Kwak Sang-do, suspected of involvement in the "Daejang-dong 5 Billion Club" scandal, was additionally indicted on the 31st. His son Byung-chae and Kim Man-bae, the major shareholder of Hwacheon Daeyu Asset Management, were also charged as accomplices of former lawmaker Kwak. This comes 265 days after the first trial court acquitted Kwak of the main charges.

Former People Power Party lawmaker Gwak Sang-do. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

The Anti-Corruption Investigation Division 1 of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office (Chief Prosecutor Kang Baek-shin) announced that on the same day, three individuals including former lawmaker Kwak were indicted without detention on charges of violating the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes, bribery and mediation under the Political Funds Act, and the Act on the Regulation of Concealment of Criminal Proceeds.

The prosecution applied charges against Byung-chae for allegedly conspiring with former lawmaker Kwak to receive approximately 2.5 billion KRW (5 billion KRW before tax) in bribes related to his duties as a member of the National Assembly around April 2021. Furthermore, it was judged that Kwak and his son, along with Kim Man-bae, conspired to disguise and conceal this money as performance bonuses for Byung-chae, who was an employee of Hwacheon Daeyu.

While the prosecution indicted only former lawmaker Kwak on bribery charges in February last year, after the first trial court acquitted him in February this year, they conducted supplementary investigations and added charges of conspiracy involving Byung-chae and intentional concealment of the money. Additionally, circumstances were newly confirmed indicating that Kim requested Kwak to resolve the so-called "Hana Bank defection crisis," which were also included in the indictment.

The prosecution also confirmed additional instances of receiving money beyond the previously acknowledged 50 million KRW related to Kwak’s violation of the Political Funds Act, for which he was found guilty in the first trial. It was revealed that in April 2016, Kwak conspired with Kim to receive a total of 100 million KRW from private businessman Nam Wook, who was undergoing an appellate trial at the time, as a bribe for mediating a request to change the indictment with the responsible prosecutor. The prosecution applied charges of mediation bribery under the Special Act and violation of the Political Funds Act for this.

Moreover, the prosecution newly confirmed and indicted Kim for donating 3 million KRW in November 2016 as a sponsorship to Kwak through Hwacheon Daeyu employee Park, and for donating 5 million KRW each in August 2017 to Nam Wook and Jung Young-hak, charges related to violations of the Political Funds Act.

The prosecution plans to request the appellate court to amend the indictment against former lawmaker Kwak and separately try the new charges including violations of the Act on the Regulation of Concealment of Criminal Proceeds.