Generous 700 Million Won Loan From Aunt and Uncle to 1996-Born Nephew Sparks Controversy

[Anchor]

As we reported yesterday (September 7), nominee for Minister of National Defense Kang Shin-chul omitted an apartment commercial property purchased by his son when submitting his confirmation hearing documents to the National Assembly. It has been revealed that the nominee's son in his 20s borrowed over 700 million won to purchase the commercial property, and the lenders were none other than his aunt and uncle. The opposition bloc has criticized the move, calling it a meticulously planned familial gift.

Reporter Go Jeong-hyeon has the details.

[Reporter]

The apartment commercial building in Yangji Village, Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, was purchased for 700 million won by the son of Defense Minister nominee Kang Shin-chul on June 30.

After it was revealed that documents related to this commercial property purchase were omitted from the asset declaration details in the confirmation hearing proposal submitted to the National Assembly, nominee Kang's side submitted two promissory notes to the National Assembly stating that the nominee's son, born in 1996, had borrowed a total of 715.5 million won from two individuals to buy the property.

Yesterday, nominee Kang's side declined to disclose the identities of the lenders, citing privacy protection. However, as confirmed today by Reform Party lawmaker Chun Ha-ram, the lenders turned out to be the nominee's sister-in-law and her husband—meaning the aunt and uncle of the nominee's son.

Notably, the son borrowed 500 million won from the aunt at an annual interest rate of 4.6 percent, and 215.5 million won interest-free from the uncle. This amount appears to take into account the maximum limit of approximately 217 million won that can legally be borrowed interest-free between private individuals under tax law.

This is because if an interest-free loan exceeds a certain threshold, it is considered a gift and is subject to gift tax.

Lawmaker Chun criticized the arrangement, asking, "What aunt and uncle would readily lend 700 million won to a nephew who has only been employed for a year?" He added, "It is a loan in name only, amounting to nothing less than a 'aunt-and-uncle chance,' or a meticulously planned family gift."

Nominee Kang's side denied the allegations of a gift, stating that it was a "legitimate debt between private individuals," and explained that "the nominee's son is properly and normally paying back the principal and interest."

However, they did not provide a specific response to the question of whether the loan amount was split to evade gift taxes.

(Video Reported by Shin Dong-hwan, Kim Yong-woo | Video Edited by Nam Il | Graphics by Seo Seung-hyun)

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