Corruption investigation zeros in on ex-minister

Chung Kyung-sim, the wife of former Justice Minister Cho Kuk, comes out of the Seoul Central District Court, Wednesday, after the court review on whether to issue an arrest warrant for her over 11 charges including obstruction of business, forgery and destruction of evidence. The court issued the warrant early Thursday morning. Yonhap

By Kim Hyun-bin

Former Justice Minister Cho Kuk is in the hot seat after his wife Chung Kyung-sim, a Donyang University professor, was arrested early Thursday morning over the ongoing corruption scandal involving the family.

While Chung was charged with 11 counts including obstruction of business, forgery, embezzlement and destruction of evidence, prosecutors believe Cho himself was an accomplice in some of the cases, or at least was aware of them.

As Chung's arrest is expected to accelerate the investigation, prosecutors are likely to summon Cho for questioning soon. The opposition parties are also urging the prosecution to conduct a thorough probe into the former minister, claiming several of the alleged crimes could not have been committed without his knowledge.

The Seoul Central District Court issued an arrest warrant for Chung, saying “Several of the charges are acknowledged, and, considering the investigation so far, we believe there is the possibility of her attempting to destroy evidence.”

Chung's lawyers argued she needed to be investigated without detention due to her deteriorating health, as it was said she was recently diagnosed with a brain tumor and cerebral infarction. But the court concluded her condition was not grave enough to avoid arrest.

The 57-year-old Chung allegedly forged her college's presidential citation to help her daughter get admitted to Pusan National University Medical School. She also faces charges of embezzlement and Capital Market Law violation for a suspicious 1 billion won ($851,000) investment in a private equity fund by herself and her two children, and destruction of evidence by switching the hard drives in her computers.

Chung denied all the charges during seven sessions of questioning by the prosecution and the court review for the warrant.

Hours after Chung was put behind bars, Cho and his son visited Seoul Detention Center to meet her.

The opposition welcomed the arrest and urged the prosecution to start questioning Cho, claiming the former minister had to be aware of his family's corrupt activities.

“It's natural to issue an arrest warrant as there was proof of destruction of evidence,” Kim Myung-yeon, chief spokesman for the main opposition Liberty Korea Party (LKP), said in a statement. “Now it's time to investigate Cho Kuk, a key accomplice to the corrupt family member.”

Oh Shin-hwan, floor leader of the minor opposition Bareunmirae Party, called on President Moon Jae-in to apologize for appointing Cho as the minister. “Chung's arrest showed Cho's explanation ― that there was no breach of the law ― was false,” he said.

However, the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) and Cheong Wa Dae, have declined to publicly discuss the matter.

"We have no comment," a Cheong Wa Dae official told a local media outlet over the phone.

DPK floor leader Lee In-young only said the party respects the court's decision and expects the trial to reveal the truth.