Arrest warrant issued for former presidential aide

A Seoul court has issued a warrant to arrest Kim Du-woo, a former senior presidential aide, on suspicions of receiving money in a corruption scandal involving a suspended savings bank.

Kim allegedly received about 100 million won worth of cash and gift cards from Park Tae-kyu, a lobbyist for Busan Mutual Savings Bank, in return for his influence over financial regulators to soften inspections of the bank and to avoid a suspension of operations.

Prosecutors will focus their investigation on whether Kim, who has denied the allegations against him, actually exerted influence on regulators to try and keep the bank from being suspended.