Official Document Confirming Kim Geon-hee's Luxury Handbag
On the 8th, the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission (ACRC) forwarded the investigation of Ryu Hee-rim, Chairman of the Korea Communications Standards Commission (KCSC), regarding the 'commissioned complaint suspicion case' to the KCSC and decided to refer the matter of personal information leakage of the complainants in this case to the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency.
Jeong Seung-yoon, Vice Chairman and Secretary General of the ACRC, announced the results of the plenary committee meeting on the same day, stating, "There was a discrepancy between the testimonies of the witnesses and Chairman Ryu regarding whether he was aware in advance of a complaint filed by a private interested party and whether he performed his duties accordingly. It is unclear whether the violation of the duty to avoid conflicts of interest by Chairman Ryu is subject to referral or closure. Therefore, in accordance with Article 22, Paragraph 5 of the Enforcement Decree of the Act on the Prevention of Conflicts of Interest, it was decided to forward the case to the KCSC."
Chairman Ryu Hee-rim is suspected of having instructed his family and acquaintances last September to file complaints requesting the review of reports citing NewsTapa's 'Kim Man-bae - Shin Hak-rim false interview.' This suspicion came to light in December of the same year when an internal KCSC employee reported corruption to the ACRC. The Democratic Party of Korea filed a complaint against Chairman Ryu earlier this year with the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors' Office for violating the Act on the Prevention of Conflicts of Interest by public officials, and the prosecution referred the case to the police.
When the case surfaced in December last year, Chairman Ryu requested an investigation, citing that the complainants' information was specifically detailed in articles by a particular media outlet (NewsTapa). Secretary General Jeong stated, "Considering that the complainants' information was specifically detailed in the related media articles as a result of the review, if there is a suspicion of a crime or a need for investigation, this falls under such cases. Therefore, in accordance with Article 9, Paragraph 3 of the Act on the Protection of Public Interest Whistleblowers and Article 9, Paragraph 1 of its Enforcement Decree, it was decided to refer this case to the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, which is investigating the same matter."
Regarding the report of violation of the KCSC's code of conduct, Secretary General Jeong explained, "Since the report concerns actions after the enforcement of the new Act on the Prevention of Conflicts of Interest, which is a higher law, and considering that a report of violation of the Act on the Prevention of Conflicts of Interest with the same content has already been received and forwarded to the KCSC, it was judged appropriate to handle it under the Act on the Prevention of Conflicts of Interest rather than the KCSC's code of conduct, and thus it was decided to close the case."
Meanwhile, the ACRC finalized the resolution and minutes on the case involving allegations of luxury handbag gifts received by Kim Geon-hee, wife of President Yoon Seok-yeol. The resolution includes the basis for the ACRC's decision last month on the 10th to close the case, stating that the luxury handbag gifts received by Mrs. Kim had no relevance to the President's official duties and therefore were not subject to reporting.
Previously, the ACRC attempted to finalize the resolution and minutes at the plenary meeting held on the 24th of last month, but the attempt failed as some members insisted that minority opinions should be included in the resolution. Secretary General Jeong stated, "After sufficient discussion on whether and how to include minority opinions in the resolution, it was decided to read the full text of the minority opinions aloud and record them in the minutes, and finally, the opinion letter and minutes were finalized."
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