Wife of Former Secretary Lee Wonmo Summoned as Suspect
Controversy Over Civilian Boarding Presidential Jet
The special prosecutor's team led by Min Junggi, which is investigating various allegations related to First Lady Kim Keonhee, has summoned the wife of former Presidential Personnel Secretary Lee Wonmo as part of its probe into her boarding the presidential jet as a civilian during the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit tour.
President Yoon Sukyeol and First Lady Kim Keonhee are boarding Air Force One at Seoul Airport in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province on the 27th to attend the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit held in Madrid, Spain, greeting as they board. Photo by Yonhap News Agency
On the 29th, the special prosecutor's team announced to the media, "This morning, we summoned Ms. Shin, who boarded the presidential jet as a civilian, for questioning as a suspect and are currently conducting the investigation."
Ms. Shin is the wife of former Personnel Secretary Lee and accompanied former President Yoon Sukyeol and his wife on their NATO tour in June 2022 by boarding Air Force One, the presidential aircraft. Despite having no official government position, she reportedly received an official passport as a member of the "delegation" and boarded the presidential jet as a civilian.
The special prosecutor's team is said to be focusing its questioning on how Ms. Shin was issued an official passport, at whose request or with whose permission she boarded the presidential jet, and other related circumstances.
It has also been reported that Ms. Shin and her mother each donated 10 million won to former President Yoon's campaign when he was a presidential candidate.
In addition to these allegations, the special prosecutor's team is expected to investigate suspicions surrounding a 9 billion won slush fund at Jaseng Bio, a company formerly headed by Ms. Shin. From 2020, Jaseng Bio received a long-term loan of 9 billion won over about two years from JSD One, a family company of Ms. Shin. During Jaseng Bio's liquidation process, JSD One removed the 9 billion won loan from its accounting books. The special prosecutor's team suspects that this money was used as a slush fund for Ms. Shin's family, and that part of it may have been funneled to First Lady Kim Keonhee's side.
Furthermore, the special prosecutor's team is expected to question Ms. Shin regarding suspicions that her husband, former Secretary Lee, received a strategic nomination for last year's general election after surpassing five other preliminary candidates from the People Power Party, allegedly with intervention from First Lady Kim Keonhee's side. Former Secretary Lee, a former prosecutor, is considered a prominent "pro-Yoon" figure, and it is known that his marriage to Ms. Shin was arranged by former President Yoon Sukyeol.
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