Park Young-soo named independent counsel for Park Geun-hye Scandal

President Park Geun-hye on Wednesday appointed a former prosecutor as the independent counsel to lead an investigation into a high-profile corruption scandal involving her and her longtime friend.

Park selected Park Young-soo, one of the two candidates that the opposition parties recommended the previous day in accordance with the law on the special investigation that took effect last week.

The appointee, currently a private attorney, is well known for his handling of major corruption cases involving local conglomerates. He came into the limelight in 2003 for his probe into a false accounting case involving a trading unit of SK Group.

His team, which will consist of 105 members including 20 prosecutors, is expected to begin work soon. It has a mandate to investigate the case for three months, which can be extended by a month upon presidential approval.

The team will look into a slew of allegations involving Park, her friend Choi Soon-sil and several former aides. Earlier this month, state prosecutors cited Park as an accomplice in the scandal.

Park is purported to have played a role in pressuring major conglomerates into donating large sums of money to two nonprofit foundations, a charge that some legal experts say can be seen as an abuse of authority.

She is also suspected of allowing her friend Choi -- who has no security clearance -- gain access to advance drafts of presidential speeches and documents, some of which are classified as confidential.

The presidential office Cheong Wa Dae has called the allegations against Park "groundless and politically biased," vowing to establish her "innocence" through the forthcoming independent probe.

After the independent counsel files charges against any suspects in the case, a district court is to rule on it within three months. An appeals court and the Supreme Court must deliver their rulings within two months each. (Yonhap)