Police Conduct Search and Seizure at Korea Sports Council over Lee Ki-heung Misconduct Allegations

'Allegations of "Obstruction of Business" and "Embezzlement"'

Lee Ki-heung, President of the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee, is reporting on business at the National Assembly's Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee's audit of the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee held on October 22. Photo by Kim Hyun-min

On the 18th, according to the Anti-Corruption Task Force of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, police dispatched investigators to eight locations, including the Korea Sports Council office in Songpa-gu, Seoul, and the Jincheon Athlete Village in Jincheon-gun, Chungbuk, from 9 a.m. to secure materials related to Chairman Lee's alleged employee irregular recruitment (obstruction of business) and other charges.

The charges applied to Chairman Lee include obstruction of business (recruitment corruption), bribery involving a third party, embezzlement in the course of duty, and breach of trust in the course of duty.

Chairman Lee is suspected of forcibly hiring a university friend of his child through improper instructions during the recruitment of staff at the national athlete village in 2022.

He is also suspected of granting key positions related to the Paris Olympics in exchange for receiving health supplements for athletes and sportswear worth approximately 80 million won from the president of a specific sports organization with whom he has a close relationship.

The police plan to analyze the results of the search and seizure to clarify the related charges.

Earlier, on November 28, the 6th Criminal Division of the Seoul Eastern District Prosecutors' Office (Chief Prosecutor Lee Sang-hyuk) conducted a search and seizure of PCs and other materials of key executives and employees at the Jincheon Athlete Village in Chungbuk, sending prosecutors and investigators in connection with suspicions of collusion between the Sports Council and a facility management service contractor.

The investigation began on the 10th of last month at the request of the Government Joint Public Service Inspection Team of the Office for Government Policy Coordination.