▲ Lawmaker Yoon Han-hong answers questions upon arriving at the Independent Counsel office
Lawmaker Yoon Han-hong of the People Power Party, suspected of improperly intervening in the selection of a construction contractor during the relocation of the presidential residence under the Yoon Suk Yeol administration, has been summoned by the second division of the special counsel team led by Kwon Chang-young.
Lawmaker Yoon appeared before the independent counsel team at around 9:40 a.m. today (August 1) as a suspect facing charges of abuse of authority and obstruction of rights.
Lawmaker Yoon is suspected of improperly intervening in the change of the residence site and the selection of construction contractors while overseeing the presidential residence relocation as the head of the task force (TF) for the relocation of the presidential office during the Yoon Suk Yeol administration.
The independent counsel team is focusing on the change of the target site after Lawmaker Yoon, along with Kim Keon-hee, spouse of former President Yoon Suk Yeol, inspected the candidate sites for the residence three times in April 2022.
The independent counsel team's perspective is that the presidential residence was originally scheduled to be relocated to the Army Chief of Staff's official residence, but the location was changed to the Foreign Minister's official residence without a justifiable reason following Kim Keon-hee's site inspection.
Lawmaker Yoon is also suspected of instructing former Vice Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Kim Oh-jin to select 21gram, an interior design company with ties to Kim Keon-hee, as the construction contractor.
As a result, the independent counsel team suspects that 21gram, an unqualified company lacking a general construction business license, received preferential treatment by being awarded a private contract for the relocation and extension construction of the residence.
21gram is known to have sponsored exhibitions hosted by Covana Contents, which was operated by Kim Keon-hee, and handled office design and construction, while Kim Keon-hee is reportedly close to the spouse of CEO Kim of 21gram.
The independent counsel team has continued related investigations after conducting a raid on Lawmaker Yoon last March as its first compulsory investigation.
Regarding allegations of the embezzlement of the residence relocation budget, the independent counsel team has indicted former Minister of the Interior and Safety Lee Sang-min and former Presidential Chief of Staff Kim Dae-ki, and is investigating former Audit Commissioner Yoo Byeong-ho after arresting him in connection with suspicions of a "look-the-other-way audit."
On the 22nd of last month, the team summoned Kim Keon-hee as a suspect and intensively questioned her over allegations of receiving valuables related to the residence relocation.
The independent counsel team plans to interrogate Lawmaker Yoon regarding the overall process of changing the residence site and selecting construction companies, as well as whether there were instructions or intervention from higher-ups.
(Photo: Yonhap News)
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