Donations of 1 Million to 3 Million Won Provided to 11 Lawmakers from Both Ruling and Opposition Parties
The police have referred key executives of the Unification Church to the prosecution on suspicion of illegally making split political donations to politicians.
On December 30, a special investigation team of the National Investigation Headquarters at the National Police Agency sent Han, the president, Yoon Youngho, former head of the World Headquarters, Jeong Wonjoo, former chief of staff to the president, and Song Gwangseok, former president of the Universal Peace Federation (UPF) Korea, to the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office on charges of violating the Political Funds Act.
Investigations revealed that, around January 2019, the Unification Church provided political funds ranging from 1 million won to as much as 3 million won to a total of 11 sitting lawmakers from both ruling and opposition parties by making donations under individual names and then reimbursing the amounts through the Unification Church corporation. The police believe that these illegal political donations were carried out with the approval of President Han.
The police did not refer the lawmakers who received political funds from the Unification Church to the prosecution. A police official stated, "We investigated a total of 30 people, including the four suspects who were referred, and based our judgment on accounting records from the National Election Commission and the Unification Church, as well as testimonies from the accounting staff of the 11 lawmakers' offices," adding, "We prioritized referring cases that were close to the statute of limitations."
The statute of limitations for violations of the Political Funds Act is seven years. Since the statute of limitations will expire early next year, the prosecution plans to promptly review the case records and decide whether to file charges.
The police are continuing to investigate allegations that, between 2018 and 2020, the Unification Church provided tens of millions of won in cash and valuables to Jeon Jae-soo, former Minister of Oceans and Fisheries, Lim Jongseong, former Democratic Party lawmaker, and Kim Kyuhwan, former United Future Party lawmaker.
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