Prosecution to carry on Choi Soon-sil probe
By Jung Min-ho
After receiving the baton from the much-lauded special prosecutor, the prosecution has formed a team of 31 prosecutors to carry on the investigation into the Choi Soon-sil scandal.
Lee Young-ryeol, head of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office, will lead the team to clear up all suspicions behind the major influence-peddling and corruption scandal involving President Park Geun-hye and Choi, her close friend.
Putting an end to the 70-day investigation, special prosecutor Park Young-soo said he could find only half of the whole truth. Revealing the other half is the prosecution’s mission and what’s at stake is public trust.
Few people are convinced that Samsung was the only company that tried to take advantage of Choi’s friendship with the President in return for business favors. But so far, Lee Jae-yong, the de facto leader of Samsung, is the only business tycoon indicted on a bribery charge.
The prosecution will investigate other leaders of major corporations, including Lotte, SK and CJ, which are suspected of the same crime.
Another tough task for the prosecution is to find out how much Woo Byung-woo, one of the key figures in the scandal, was involved in the corruption chain.
Woo, who served as the presidential secretary for civil affairs from May 2014 to October 2016, is accused of overlooking meddling in state affairs, abusing his power to protect Cheong Wa Dae and himself, obstructing the investigation into the sinking of the ferry Sewol in 2014 among many other allegations.
But Seoul Central District Court rejected the special prosecutor’s arrest warrant for lack of evidence after the special prosecutor failed to collect evidence at Cheong Wa Dae.
It has been revealed that Woo, the former prosecutor, exchanged 1,000 phone calls with high-ranking prosecutors from July to October when he was investigated as a criminal suspect.
The result of the investigation for Woo will be critical for the prosecution, which must regain public trust to avoid a major reform that all major presidential hopefuls promise they will do.
The prosecution also has to finish the investigation of Chung Yoo-ra, Choi’s daughter.
She is suspected of sharing alleged kickbacks from Samsung with her mother and receiving favors in admissions and grading from Ewha Womans University.
Most people involved in the allegations, including former university President Choi Kyung-hee and former dean of physical education Kim Kyung-sook, have been arrested, but Chung is staying in Denmark to avoid investigation.