CIO summons Judge Ji Gui-yeon over alleged "room salon" entertainment

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\r\n[Financial News] The Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) has summoned and questioned Seoul Northern District Court Chief Judge Ji Gui-yeon, who presided over the first-trial ruling in former President Yoon Suk Yeol's insurrection case, over allegations that he received entertainment at a "room salon."
\r\nAccording to the legal community on the 11th, the CIO questioned Ji on the 7th as a suspect on charges of bribery and violations of the Improper Solicitation and Graft Act.
In May last year, the Democratic Party of Korea claimed that Ji had received entertainment at a room salon with female staff and released a photo showing Ji and two others at what appeared to be a bar in Gangnam, Seoul. At the time, the party raised questions about Ji's qualifications as the judge in Yoon's insurrection trial.
After Candlelight Action and other civic groups filed a series of complaints with the CIO accusing Ji of bribery and violations of the Improper Solicitation and Graft Act, the agency assigned the case to Investigation Division 3, led by Chief Prosecutor Lee Dae-hwan.
In November last year, the CIO obtained a search warrant from the court and carried out a compulsory investigation into Ji's taxi app usage records. However, in September, the Supreme Court of Korea's ethics and inspection office released the Court Audit Committee's review results, saying, "Based on the facts confirmed so far, it is difficult to recognize a connection to official duties."
Ji later sentenced Yoon to life imprisonment in the first trial on Feb. 19 this year and was transferred in February to the Seoul Northern District Court, Civil Division 6.
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hwlee@fnnews.com Lee Hwan-ju Reporter