The prosecution said Thursday it has secured clues indicating that the late Keangnam Enterprises Chairman Sung Woan-jong offered illegal political funds to at least 20 lawmakers through company executives.
Prosecutors refused to disclose the names of the lawmakers, but their latest statement indicates that the ongoing investigation into Sung's bribery list may involve more Assemblymen.
Such actions are in violation of the law on political funding that bans any donations under false names or donations by companies.
The prosecution's special probe team said that it raided Keangnam's headquarters and the homes of 11 aides to Sung on Wednesday night, as part of an investigation into his alleged bribing politicians, and found computer files about the payments.
The files had the names and the amounts of money given to them in 2013. The files were deleted but the investigators recovered them, according to the prosecution.
One of the aides told a local daily that Sung gave up to 5 million won to several high-ranking executives in cash or in remittance in the name of salary, and had them offer the money to the designated lawmakers under their or their family members?names.
The then told the executives?names to the lawmakers, so that the lawmakers could know the money was actually from Sung,?he was quoted as saying.
The alleged illegal political fund offering was made in 2013 when Keangnam was in a debt-workout program. It is alleged that he bribed the lawmakers to seek their influence on the program.
Another company official claimed that junior workers were also recommended to offer 100,000 won each to specific lawmakers, adding the recommendation was in fact an order.?
If this allegation is also true, Sung also violated the law that prohibits forced donations.
It is also alleged that Sung gave presents to 556 politicians, government officials, businessmen and journalists on holidays such as Seollal or Chuseok since 2007.
During Wednesday's raid, prosecutors also searched for a diary, notebook or other recordings in which he allegedly recorded his meetings with politicians or details about bribery.
The search followed allegations that he recorded his bribe offerings in a notebook several days before killing himself while being investigated for alleged corruption surrounding the failed "energy diplomacy" under the Lee Myung-bak administration.
If there are any, they will be separate from a memo Sung left before the suicide in which he wrote the names of eight politicians and the amounts of alleged kickbacks given to them.
After the raid, the investigators did not say whether they obtained such recordings or not.
One of the raided locations was the home of Yun Seung-mo, former outside director of Keangnam who allegedly delivered 100 million won in kickbacks from Sung to South Gyeongsang Province Governor Hong Joon-pyo in 2011.