[Exclusive] 'Kim Yeo-sa's Butler' Kim Ye-seong "Escape to a Third Country is Not True"... Wife to Appear Before Special Prosecutor on 23rd

[Financial News] Kim Ye-seong, known as 'butler' of Kim Geon-hee, emphasized that the 'escape to a third country' announced by the Kim Geon-hee Special Prosecutor Team (Min Jung-gi Special Prosecutor) is "not true." Mr. Kim intends to actively clarify related suspicions by responding to the special prosecutor team's investigation. He stated that the timing of his return and appearance before the special prosecutor team would be after the investigation of his wife Ms. Jeong by the special prosecutor team.
According to the legal community on the 21st, Mr. Kim and Ms. Jeong submitted a lawyer appointment letter to the special prosecutor team on this day. The special prosecutor team informed Ms. Jeong through her lawyer to appear for investigation at 10 AM on the 23rd at the Seoul KT Gwanghwamun Building West office where the special prosecutor is located.
It is known that Mr. Kim, currently in Vietnam, has also conveyed his intention to accept the special prosecutor's investigation. Meanwhile, he claimed that the assertions of 'lost contact' and 'escape to a third country' made by the special prosecutor team are not true.
Mr. Kim's lawyer explained, "We have not received any direct summons or contact from the special prosecutor," and "Mr. Kim was living in Vietnam and went to Thailand temporarily due to visa issues and returned to Vietnam, not escaping to a third country."
He also stated, "If Mr. Kim enters Korea, there will be no one to take care of his two young children in Vietnam," and "Mr. Kim intends to come to Korea immediately for investigation and clarification once his wife's travel ban is lifted and she can go to Vietnam to protect the children."
The 'butler gate' suspicion involves the allegation that Mr. Kim, known as Kim Yeo-sa's butler, was involved in the establishment of IMS Mobility, which received an investment of 18.4 billion won from companies such as Kakao Mobility, HS Hyosung, and Korea Securities Finance. IMS Mobility was in a state of capital erosion with liabilities (141.4 billion won) far exceeding its net assets (55.6 billion won) at the time, but it was revealed to have received large investments from various companies.
The special prosecutor suspects that Mr. Kim received quid pro quo investments by leveraging his friendship with Kim Yeo-sa. It is reported that Mr. Kim first met Kim Yeo-sa during the Seoul National University Graduate School of Business program in 2010 and built a friendship. Mr. Kim is also a key figure who was involved in the forgery of balance certificates for Kim Yeo-sa's mother, Choi Eun-sun, and did not miss any involvement in the Kim Yeo-sa family.
Accordingly, the special prosecutor believes that the companies that invested in IMS Mobility had various issues such as call allocation suspicions, and that Mr. Kim received investments by exploiting Kim Yeo-sa's public status.
Mr. Kim is also suspected of selling shares worth over 4.6 billion won out of the 18.4 billion won investment and pocketing the profits. The borrowed-name company Mr. Kim used at the time is known as InnoVest Korea, and it is identified that Mr. Kim's wife Ms. Jeong is the only registered director of this company, raising suspicions that it might be a borrowed-name company owned by Mr. Kim.
Currently, in relation to the 'butler gate,' the special prosecutor team has obtained an arrest warrant for Mr. Kim and is proceeding with the passport invalidation process. They are also focusing on securing Mr. Kim's custody through an Interpol red notice.



jisseo@fnnews.com Seo Min-ji Jeong Kyung-soo Reporter