Kwon Seong-dong Claims "Opposition Lawmaker Jang Kyung-tae Contacted Lawyer Kim Gyu-hyun"

Assemblyman Jang: "It's Just to Verify the Tip"

Rep. Kwon Seong-dong of the People Power Party claimed on the 27th that there is evidence showing lawyer Kim Gyu-hyun, who reported the group chat contents related to the ‘lobbying to save former Marine Corps 1st Division Commander Im Seong-geun,’ discussed the matter with Rep. Jang Kyung-tae of the Democratic Party. Lawyer Kim is known to be a former Democratic Party aide and the attorney for former Marine Corps investigation team leader Park Jeong-hoon.

Kwon Seong-dong, Member of the People Power Party. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

On the same day, Rep. Kwon referred to a media report stating that the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) secured a recording containing discussions between lawyer Kim and a re-elected Democratic Party lawmaker from the Seoul metropolitan area, identified as ‘A lawmaker,’ regarding this allegation. He pointed out, “The lawmaker A is Rep. Jang.”

The report mentioned that during a phone call on the 11th with one of the members of the group chat, who was identified as a channel for lobbying to save former Commander Im, lawmaker A said, “(Lawyer Kim) came to me and said, ‘Although I lied a few times, I am well connected and communicate well with senior Song (Song Ho-jong, former Presidential Security Service) and senior Lee (Lee Jong-ho, former CEO of Black Pearl Investment).’”

It was also reported that lawmaker A referred to lawyer Kim during the call as “the person who planned and orchestrated all of this (the lobbying allegations).”

Regarding this, Rep. Kwon stated, “(Rep. Jang) not only contacted lawyer Kim but also heard his confession of lying,” and added, “This also acknowledges lawyer Kim’s whistleblowing scheme.”

Rep. Kwon criticized Rep. Jang, pointing out that he recently served as a Supreme Council member of the Democratic Party, saying, “The Democratic Party leadership did not trust lawyer Kim but politically exploited the lobbying allegations raised by him,” and “They used this entire conspiracy theory as a tool for political conflict, fully aware that it was false.” He further asserted, “This case is a ‘fraudulent impeachment gate’ where the Democratic Party is trying to impeach the president using false facts fabricated through whistleblowing schemes and collusion with the media,” urging, “Investigative agencies must immediately investigate lawyer Kim.”

Rep. Jang emphasized, “The whistleblower has hostility toward lawyer Kim and tailored the information accordingly,” adding, “Rep. Kwon himself proved that the Democratic Party has no connection with lawyer Kim and probably sensed that their relationship is rather distant.”

He also said, “I met lawyer Kim after the legislative hearing on the Chae Sang-byeong special prosecutor law because there were multiple whistleblowers, and before the impeachment petition hearing for President Yoon Seok-yeol, I met lawyer Kim to ‘cross-check’ the information,” adding, “At that time, lawyer Kim was uncooperative in providing materials and later did not even respond to calls.”

He continued, “Although the substance of the lobbying allegations seemed certain based on testimonies and photos from multiple whistleblowers, I did not reveal everything at the hearing for the sake of the whistleblowers,” and stated, “Now that the recording has surfaced, it actually works in our favor. If Lee Jong-ho appears at the hearing, I will make additional disclosures.”