Kim Gun-hee Special Counsel: "Unification Church's 'Support for Democratic Party' Not Subject to Investigation... To Be Transferred to Authorities"

"Investigative Report Prepared, Preliminary Case Number Assigned, But Not Within Investigative Scope"
Yoon Youngho Testified to 'Support for Democratic Party' During Special Prosecutor's Investigation

Min Jung-ki, the special prosecutor in charge of the case related to allegations against Kim Gun-hee, wife of former President Yoon Seok-yeol, is giving a greeting at the plaque unveiling ceremony held on July 2 at the special prosecutor's office set up in the KT Gwanghwamun Building West in Jongno-gu, Seoul.

The special prosecutor team led by Min Jung-ki, which is investigating allegations surrounding Kim Gun-hee, announced that the statement made by Yoon Young-ho, former head of the Unification Church World Headquarters, regarding financial support to the Democratic Party of Korea does not fall under their investigative jurisdiction.

At a regular briefing on December 8, Special Prosecutor Assistant Oh Jeong-hee stated, "After former head Yoon was arrested and indicted in August this year, we heard his testimony in court with his defense counsel present," adding, "We assigned a preliminary case number to the statement and created a case record."

She continued, "However, based on the personal, material, and temporal aspects of former head Yoon's testimony, it is clear that it does not fall under the investigative scope of the special prosecutor law, so we plan to transfer it to the appropriate investigative agency."

She explained, "This is the same as when the special prosecutor determined that the gambling allegations against Unification Church President Han Hak-ja, which arose during the investigation into the Unification Church, did not constitute a material investigative target and therefore were not investigated."

The special prosecutor team refuted allegations that they failed to investigate despite securing testimony from former head Yoon, stating that this is not true. The team explained that after hearing Yoon's testimony during the investigation, they prepared an investigative report with his signature and assigned a preliminary case number to create a record. Assistant Special Prosecutor Oh emphasized, "The view that we deliberately did not investigate because it involved a particular political party is completely unfounded," adding, "The special prosecutor is conducting the investigation according to law and principle."

According to legal sources, during the special prosecutor's investigation in August, former head Yoon testified that "during the Moon Jae-in administration, I gave a luxury watch worth around 10 million won and tens of millions of won in cash to one senior Democratic Party lawmaker, and gave tens of millions of won in cash to another lawmaker."

Former head Yoon also testified that the current and former lawmakers visited Cheonjeonggung, the Unification Church headquarters in Gapyeong-gun, Gyeonggi Province, greeted President Han Hak-ja, and received money. However, it is reported that the special prosecutor team did not conduct investigations such as search and seizure or summons of the Democratic Party lawmakers identified as recipients. The special prosecutor law for the Kim Gun-hee case stipulates that "related criminal acts" recognized during the investigation may also be investigated. Nevertheless, the special prosecutor team repeatedly emphasized on this day that the matter does not fall within their investigative jurisdiction.

It is reported that around ten Democratic Party politicians are implicated in the bribery allegations, and former head Yoon is said to have testified about some of them during the special prosecutor's investigation. Former head Yoon made these statements in August, at a time when the investigation into bribery allegations involving People Power Party lawmaker Kweon Seong-dong and the Unification Church was gaining momentum. The Unification Church is also known to have supported Democratic Party politicians in various forms beyond cash, including official political donations and book purchases at publication events.