In a rare move, South Korean prosecutors raided the office of a defense ministry official who is under probe on suspicion of receiving kickbacks from a military equipment supplier, military and prosecution sources said Friday.
The Seoul Western Prosecutors' Office on Wednesday raided Seoul's defense ministry building in its widening probe into the allegations that the inspection official received 162 million won ($145,000) from a senior manager working for a veterans' association that supplied materials for military thermal underwear. Names of the two people who are allegedly involved in the incident have been withheld by authorities.
The senior official at the Korean Veterans' Association of Vietnam War has been under investigation on charges of pocketing 1.2 billion won from 2006 onwards until quite recently, while providing 17.1 billion won worth of military equipment.
The inspection official denied the allegations, saying he was only collecting his debts from the manager of the association. He has since been relieved of his duties. (Yonhap)