Following Written Inquiry with Initial Complainant,
Joo Jinwoo's Office Staff Summoned
The police investigation into allegations of stock transactions under borrowed names by independent lawmaker Lee Choonseok, formerly of the Democratic Party of Korea, is gaining momentum as they continue to question the complainants.
According to the police on August 8, the Financial Crime Investigation Unit of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency conducted a written inquiry with citizen A, who filed a complaint against Lee and his aide, identified as Mr. Cha, for alleged violations of the Real Name Financial Transactions Act and other charges.
The initial complainant, A, submitted a petition through the National Sinmungo on August 5, requesting a thorough investigation on suspicions that Lee may have created slush funds.
On the afternoon of the same day, the police also summoned a staff member from the office of People Power Party lawmaker Joo Jinwoo for questioning as a complainant. The staff member stated, "I reiterated the purpose of the complaint during the police investigation," and added, "We conveyed our position that a thorough investigation is necessary, as other members of the National Policy Planning Committee may also have committed similar offenses."
The police plan to continue questioning complainants by summoning Kim Soonhwan, Secretary-General of the Seomin People's Livelihood Countermeasures Committee (Seominwi), on the morning of August 9.
Lee is under suspicion for allegedly trading stocks related to artificial intelligence (AI) under his aide's name on August 4 in the plenary session hall of the National Assembly. At that time, Lee was observed trading shares of Naver and LG CNS, both AI-related stocks. This has sparked controversy over a potential conflict of interest, as Lee was serving as the head of the Economic Division 2 in charge of AI policy within the National Policy Planning Committee.
To investigate the allegations, the Financial Crime Investigation Unit has formed a dedicated team of 25 specialists, including lawyers and accountants.
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