Kim Byung-ki to Face First Police Questioning on the 26th Over 13 Allegations Including Nomination Kickbacks

Police will summon independent lawmaker Kim Byung-ki on the 26th as a criminal suspect over a series of misconduct allegations. This will be his first appearance before investigators, nearly three months after the accusations first surfaced in earnest.
The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency (SMPA) Public Crime Investigation Unit plans to call in Kim on the morning of the 26th as a suspect on charges including violations of the Political Funds Act. It will be the first time Kim has been questioned by police in connection with this case.
Kim is under investigation in relation to a total of 13 matters, including allegations that he received nomination kickbacks.
At the center of the case is a suspicion that, ahead of the 2020 general election, he received a total of 30 million won in illicit nomination funds from two members of the Dongjak District Council in Seoul. The money was allegedly funneled through his close aide, Vice Chairperson of the Dongjak District Council Lee Ji-hee, and his spouse, and later returned.
Police are also looking into allegations that, ahead of the Parliamentary Inspection of the Administration last September, Kim had an expensive lunch at a hotel restaurant in Yeouido with Park Dae-jun, former head of Coupang in Korea, and then demanded personnel disadvantages for two former aides who had gone on to work at Coupang.
The probe also covers allegations involving his family. These include claims that he intervened to secure preferential transfer admission for his second son to Soongsil University and sought to arrange a job for him at the cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb, as well as suspicions that he worked to have an investigation dropped into his spouse’s alleged private use of Dongjak District Council business promotion expenses.
In addition, police are investigating whether he received hotel accommodation vouchers from Korean Air, whether local hospitals in his constituency provided him with preferential treatment, and whether he violated the Protection of Communications Secrets Act.
Police have already summoned Kim’s spouse for questioning, and on the previous day called in his second son as a suspect on suspicion of obstruction of business. Vice Chairperson Lee Ji-hee, regarded as one of Kim’s closest associates, has also been summoned twice so far so that investigators could establish the sequence of events.
Search and seizure operations and witness interviews continued right up until his summons. On the 24th, officers conducted raids at two locations, including Bithumb’s headquarters in Gangnam District, Seoul, in connection with the alleged job solicitation for his son. The day before, they reportedly questioned one of Kim’s former aides as a witness and obtained testimony regarding suspicions that his spouse misused a corporate credit card.
Police plan to continue questioning Kim on the 27th, following the session on the 26th.
425_sama@fnnews.com Choi Seung-han Reporter