Court rejects bail for ex-senior presidential aide jailed over Yongsan relocation probe
im Dae-ki, former presidential chief of staff / Korea Times file
A court has denied a bail request by a former chief of staff to ousted President Yoon Suk Yeol over alleged irregularities in the 2022 relocation of the presidential residence, according to legal sources Monday.
The Seoul Central District Court rejected the bail request by Kim Dae-ki, the former chief of staff to Yoon, earlier in the day, citing concerns that the defendant could destroy evidence, according to the sources.
Kim is accused of illegally diverting some 2 billion won ($1.3 million) from a government budget to pay an interior design company for the renovation of the presidential residence during its relocation from Cheong Wa Dae to the central Seoul district of Yongsan.
The company, 21 Gram, is suspected of having won the project despite being unqualified, due to its ties with Yoon's wife, Kim Keon Hee.
The relocation of the presidential office and residence was one of Yoon's campaign pledges. Incumbent President Lee Jae Myung has returned both to Cheong Wa Dae.