Researcher at Ministry of Science and ICT Affiliate Referred to Prosecution for Soliciting Travel Expenses in Exchange for Business Selection

A researcher at an agency affiliated with a government ministry has been referred to the prosecution for allegedly accepting bribes from a service provider in exchange for assistance in the business selection process.

The Gyeonggi Ilsan Seobu Police Station announced that it has referred a senior researcher in his 40s, identified as A, from the Korea Institute of Civil Engineering and Building Technology under the Ministry of Science and ICT, to the prosecution without detention on charges of bribery.

According to the police, A is accused of receiving 5.5 million won under the guise of travel expenses from a company operated by an individual identified as B in December 2023, while he was in charge of tasks related to projects commissioned by the research institute.

Investigations revealed that A solicited the bribe from B by saying, "If you support my travel expenses, I will help you get selected for the project."

The project in question was a service contract related to traffic volume surveys.

Although B paid for A's travel expenses, the project was not actually awarded to B's company.

The police have taken measures to forfeit the full amount of the bribe received by A and have also referred B to the prosecution without detention on charges of offering a bribe.

(Photo: Yonhap News TV, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.