Prosecutors raided the offices of defense equipment parts manufacturers on Thursday over allegations of irregularities in the signing of contracts with the country's arms procurement agency.
The Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office said they raided an office and homes of the related officials from an armored vehicles parts supplier and another company which supplies bulletproof vests. Accounting books, computer hard discs and documents related to the contracts have been confiscated.
Prosecutors suspect high-level military officials may have given favors to the companies in the process of signing contracts.
They are planning to summon the related officials once they are done analyzing the confiscated materials.
Recently, there has been a series of high-profile corruption scandals related to the supply of parts for military vehicles and body armor.
In 2014, military authorities arrested employees from defense equipment firms who manipulated test results and supplied defective parts used in the assembly of armored vehicles.
The bulletproof jacket maker, identified only by its initial S, also has a record of supplying jackets vulnerable to North Korea's armor-piercing ammunition. This company has come under scrutiny for lobbying military officials to win deals. (Yonhap)