Police Interview Hak Ja Han and Yoon Young-ho in 'Unification Church Lobbying Scandal'... Former UPF President Also Summoned

The police, currently investigating allegations of Unification Church bribery involving political figures, are set to conduct additional interviews with Hak Ja Han, President of the Unification Church, and Yoon Young-ho, former World Headquarters Director. In addition, the investigation is accelerating as the former president of the Universal Peace Federation (UPF), who has emerged as a new key figure, has been summoned as a suspect.
On the morning of the 24th, the Special Investigation Task Force of the National Investigation Headquarters, Korean National Police Agency visited Seoul Detention Center to question President Hak and former Director Yoon as suspects on charges of bribery and violations of the Political Funds Act.
They are accused of delivering cash and luxury watches worth tens of millions of won to Jeon Jae-soo, former Minister of Oceans and Fisheries, Lim Jong Seong, former lawmaker of the Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), and Kyuhwan Kim, former lawmaker of the United Future Party, between 2018 and 2020.
This is the second time police have conducted interviews with President Hak and former Director Yoon. Previously, on the 11th, police questioned Yoon at the Seoul Detention Center, and on the 17th, they interviewed President Hak for about three hours. At that time, police reportedly questioned them extensively about the allegations but failed to obtain any significant statements.
Based on records seized from ten locations, including Cheon Jeong Gung, during recent raids, the police are expected to focus on uncovering details of the lobbying activities through these interviews. They are also prioritizing efforts to clarify the actual flow of funds.
On the same day, police summoned Mr. Song, former president of UPF Korea, to the Korean National Police Agency in Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, for questioning as a suspect on charges including violations of the Political Funds Act. This marks the first time Mr. Song has been summoned for investigation.
Mr. Song, who led organizations under the Unification Church such as UPF, is considered a central figure in the lobbying allegations. Police suspect that Mr. Song and others acted as intermediaries in the transfer of Unification Church funds to former Minister Jeon, former lawmaker Lim, and former lawmaker Kim.
Police are focusing their investigative efforts on tracking the flow of lobbying funds to political circles. The previous day, they summoned Mr. Cho, former General Affairs Director of the Unification Church World Headquarters, as a witness and questioned him for about ten hours. Mr. Cho, who managed cash flow as the direct supervisor of Mr. Lee, then head of the finance department, was in charge of financial management. Mr. Lee is the wife of former Director Yoon, and police reportedly summoned her for questioning on the 22nd.


welcome@fnnews.com Jang Yoo-ha Reporter