President Lee Myung-bak's former senior secretary returned home late Wednesday after being grilled by prosecutors for his suspected involvement in the allegations that former National Assembly Speaker Park Hee-tae bribed fellow lawmakers to win the ruling party's chairman post in 2008.
Kim Hyo-jae, who worked as Lee's chief political-affairs secretary, emerged from the central prosecutors' office in southern Seoul around 11:45 p.m. after nearly 14 hours of interrogation.
"I have told prosecutors everything I know," Kim told reporters before he headed home, without indicating whether the allegations of his involvement are true.
Kim is suspected of playing a key role in Park's alleged vote-buying during the 2008 chairman election of the ruling Grand National Party, now renamed the Saenuri Party, according to prosecutors.
Prosecution sources said Kim, during the interrogation, denied the suspicion that he personally directed the circulation of bribes to ruling party lawmakers and party members.
Kim was the emergency monitoring chief for Park's election camp during the allegedly bribery-ridden party convention. Both stepped down from their posts earlier in February due to the growing bribery allegations.
Prosecution sources believe prosecutors will soon file for an arrest warrant for the former presidential aide to continue the questioning on charges of violating the local political party law.
Park is likely to be called in by prosecutors for questioning over the weekend, according to the sources. (Yonhap)