By Kim Sue-young
Staff Reporter
The prosecution will examine this week libel and counter-libel suits involving two presidential contenders of the opposition Grand National Party (GNP), but the GNP warned prosecutors not to abuse the case to force former Seoul Mayor Lee Myung-bak to drop out of the presidential race.
The Seoul Central Prosecutors' Office plans to summon Kim Jae-jung, the brother-in-law of leading presidential contender Lee this week as a plaintiff.
Kim filed a libel suit last week against the Kyunghyang Shinmun newspaper and the camp of Lee's rival presidential hopeful Park Geun-hye, both of whom raised suspicions on illicit land trading. Lee's camp contended that government agencies, including the National Intelligence Service (NIS), leaked the story to the media to defame the former Seoul mayor.
The prosecution has been reviewing reports on shady property deals to find out whether Lee concealed real estate deals to avoid tax, and who leaked information on Lee's private wealth.
An investigation is also under way on how Kim bought the land located in an upscale area in southern Seoul.
According to reports, Kim had purchased 47 plots of land nationwide, including 4,000 square meters in Dogok-dong, southern Seoul, since the early 1980s.
However, he could not actually afford to buy the land during that time as he was heavily in debt and his house was under a seizure order.
The newspaper said that Lee might have bought all or part of the properties in question by using his brother-in-law as a front man.
Dealing with the so-called ``propertygate,'' the prosecutors will also look into the allegation that Lee, a former CEO of Hyundai Construction and Engineering, was involved in stock manipulation of the investment company BBK.
As Lee tops all surveys gaining support of about 40 percent, he has become the target of public scrutiny.
Political parties as well as his party rivals have continuously raised suspicions about him and members of his family.
Currently, the leading presidential hopeful and his confidents are suspected of exploiting information on the governments' development plans when they built apartment complexes in eastern Seoul and peddling influence in purchasing real estate. However, Lee's camp contends that all the allegations are part of what its calls a heinous and systematic plot to end Lee's presidential candidacy.
As suspicions are mounting, they are urging prosecutors to maintain their political neutrality in the investigation.
GNP Rep. Lee Jae-oh who belongs to Lee's camp said the prosecutors should complete their investigation at the earliest possible date because they are dealing with just a libel case.
Rep. Lee expressed worries that the investigation may be a political maneuver aimed at the frontrunner's candidacy.
He also requested the chief of the NIS to clarify the allegation that the intelligence agency has a file on the ex-Seoul mayor, which has been updated since 2005. The Lee camp suspects that the state agencies have intentionally leaked the file to the media to smear him.
The former Seoul mayor faces a rocky road ahead in his bid for presidency as a series of allegations over his wealth accumulation have pulled down his popularity. The ongoing prosecutorial probe might add further damage to him. But the Lee camp said his core supporters have not been swayed by the smear campaigns.