Legal Committee: "Prosecutor Yoon Suk-yeol at the Time Suspected of 'Lenient Investigation'"
The Democratic Party of Korea on the 21st filed a complaint with the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) against Choi Sang-mok, Acting Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance, for violations of the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes and the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes.
Members of the Democratic Party's Legal Committee held a press conference on the 21st in front of the Civil Complaints Office of the High-ranking Officials' Crime Investigation Agency in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province, before submitting a complaint against Acting President Choi Sang-mok. From left to right: Assemblymen Park Hee-seung, Park Gyun-taek, and Lee Sung-yoon. Photo by Yonhap News Agency
The Democratic Party's Legal Committee held a press conference in front of the CIO building in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province, on the morning of the same day, claiming, "Choi Sang-mok actively participated in crimes related to the establishment of the Mir Foundation while serving as the Blue House Economic and Financial Secretary in 2015, when the Park Geun-hye?Choi Soon-sil gate crimes occurred."
The Legal Committee stated, "Choi Sang-mok conspired with Park Geun-hye and then Blue House Chief Ahn Jong-beom to establish the Mir Foundation and collected a total of 48.6 billion won in contributions from 16 groups," and added, "He held multiple meetings with Blue House administrators and executives of the Federation of Korean Industries (FKI) to discuss the amounts each group would contribute and the establishment plan."
They also claimed, "After the establishment of the Mir Foundation, the Park Geun-hye administration supported the succession of corporate management rights at the cost of astronomical losses to the National Pension Service and granted pardons to corporate heads," and stated, "At the time of the Mir Foundation's establishment, Choi Sang-mok angrily urged FKI officials to provide a list of groups that had not yet signed contribution agreements and pressured them to collect contributions."
Furthermore, they said, "He used his position to demand contributions from FKI executives and representatives of contributing companies, and made them feel threatened by the risk of tangible and intangible disadvantages if they did not comply, ultimately forcing them to meet his demands," and concluded, "We hereby file a complaint in the name of the people against Acting Prime Minister Choi, who bears significant responsibility for the Park Geun-hye?Choi Soon-sil state affairs manipulation scandal, on charges of bribery and extortion, and urge the CIO to conduct a thorough investigation."
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