By Yi Whan-woo
The prosecution indicted Rep. Chung Doo-un of the ruling Saenuri Party Monday on charges of taking bribes from the head of a savings bank in return for business favors.
The special investigation unit of the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office said that Chung, 55, allegedly took 440 million won ($389,500) from Lim Suk, the chairman of Solomon Savings Bank, which was suspended in May.
The indictment came after the National Assembly in July rejected an arrest motion on Chung, a former aide to President Lee Myung-bak, despite suspicions that he accepted the money from Lim, 50, to raise campaign funds for the 2007 presidential election.
The prosecution said this time that Chung might have used 140 million he received in October 2007 for his personal use. He was suspected of taking the money at the request of former Saenuri lawmaker Lee Sang-deok, 76, the elder brother of the president.
The elder Lee, a former vice speaker of the National Assembly, is on trial for similar bribery charges. He has also been involved in other corruption cases before and after his brother was elected president.
Prosecutors added that Chung also allegedly took 300 million won from the chief of the debt-ridden Solomon in March 2008, just before parliamentary elections.
Lim was indicted for offering bribes to a number of politicians to enjoy business favors and avoid his bank being suspended. He was also indicted for embezzling company funds.
The financial regulator suspended Solomon and three other savings banks in May for their failure to meet the capital adequacy ratio recommended by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS).
Chung remained with the Saenuri Party despite mounting pressure on him to leave it amid concerns that his presence may have a negative effect on the party ahead of the presidential election in December.