Four-term conservative lawmaker's house searched over bribery

By Kim Se-jeong

Prosecutors searched the office and home of Rep. Choi Kyung-hwan of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party (LKP), Monday, over an allegation he accepted a bribe from the National Intelligence Service (NIS) in 2014 in return for pushing budgetary favors for the spy agency.

Choi was then the minister of strategy and finance and deputy prime minister for economic affairs and well-connected with lawmakers at the National Assembly.

Ten officials from the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office confiscated documents, computer files and hard disks from the four-term lawmaker’s National Assembly office and Seoul residence.

Choi faces allegations that he received 100 million won ($91,000) in cash in 2014 in exchange for exerting influence to increase the NIS’s annual budget. The finance ministry is responsible for reviewing the annual budget plan for the spy agency and approving it before sending it to the Assembly.

While Rep. Choi denies the allegation, the prosecution suspects the former minister broke the Anti-Graft Law.

A crucial piece of evidence for the prosecution is the testimony of former NIS chief Lee Byung-kee who said he had given the bribe to Choi.

Lee was arrested last week on suspicions of bribing high-ranking officials at the presidential office. The prosecutors also obtained more testimony from a former high-profile NIS official who testified that he had handed the money to Choi himself.

The prosecution said it will soon summon him for questioning but didn’t specify when.

Many viewed the search as only a prelude to a bribery investigation into former and incumbent lawmakers.

Speculation is running high among politicians that other lawmakers, especially conservative ones with close ties to former President Park Geun-hye, might have received money from the NIS for favors.

The widening investigation into lawmakers, if it happens, will also bring additional charges against Park who is on trial for corruption and influence peddling involving her confidante Choi Soon-sil.

The probe into the NIS started with allegations that the agency mobilized its resources to manipulate public opinion under former President Lee Myung-bak.

The prosecution obtained evidence that the NIS recruited young soldiers and paid people to wage online activities that were geared toward shaping positive public opinion about Lee.

The LKP issued a statement, defending Choi.

“The prosecutors had better make sure the investigation into a member of the legislature is fair, without any bias. We already suspect bias and will keep a close eye on developments,” Rep. Chang Je-won, the party’s chief spokesman, said.

Monday’s search is also expected to rekindle a debate about the NIS’s clandestine fund which is not required to make public. With mandates to maintain national security from North Korean threats, the agency is supposed to spend the secret budget to achieve this goal.