Former GH President Cleared of Breach of Duty Charges in 'Lease Next to Lee's Residence' Case

Lee Heonwook, former president of Gyeonggi Housing and Urban Development Corporation (GH), and other related officials who were accused of instructing the corporation to lease a dormitory next to the former residence of Lee Jaemyung, the presidential candidate of the Democratic Party of Korea, have been cleared of charges.

According to the legal community and GH on May 26, the Criminal Division 6 of the Suwon District Prosecutors' Office (headed by Chief Prosecutor Seo Hyunwook) recently decided not to indict four GH officials, including the former president, on charges of breach of duty, citing insufficient evidence and other reasons.

The former president had been under investigation for allegedly causing financial loss to the company by instructing the GH Pangyo Project Team in August 2020, when Lee Jaemyung was the Governor of Gyeonggi Province, to lease a 200.66-square-meter (61-pyeong) apartment in Sunae-dong, Bundang-gu, Seongnam City, for two years at a deposit of 950 million won, despite the fact that the existing GH dormitory contract had not yet expired.

The apartment in question was located right next to Lee Jaemyung's residence at the time. In February 2022, the People Power Party filed a complaint against the former president regarding this dormitory, raising suspicions that it was used as a presidential campaign office for Lee Jaemyung.

The police, who were in charge of the investigation at the time, found no evidence that the dormitory was used as a campaign office and determined that there was no violation of the Public Official Election Act. However, regarding the allegation that GH caused financial loss to the company by leasing a new apartment while already having an existing dormitory, the police continued their investigation and referred the former president to the prosecution in December 2023.