Special Counsel to Summon Audit Commissioner Yoo Byung-ho as Suspect on July 13 Over Presidential Residence Relocation Audit

The second comprehensive special counsel team, tasked with investigating remaining allegations following the third special counsel probe, will summon Audit Commissioner Yoo Byung-ho as a suspect next week regarding suspicions of a flawed audit into the relocation of the presidential residence.
The special counsel team announced in a press release today (July 10) that it plans to conduct a suspect interrogation of Commissioner Yoo on July 13 at 10:00 a.m. on charges of abuse of power.
Yoo is accused of unfairly intervening to downplay or cover up the results of the audit concerning the relocation of the presidential residence while serving as the Secretary-General of the Board of Audit and Inspection (BAI) during the Yoon Suk Yeol administration.
After his election, former President Yoon Suk Yeol relocated the presidential office to the Ministry of National Defense building in Yongsan and the presidential residence to the former official residence of the Minister of Foreign Affairs.
Following the move, various allegations were raised regarding the selection process for construction contractors and construction costs, leading to an audit initiated after People's Solidarity for Participatory Democracy and others filed for a public audit in October 2022.
After approximately two years of auditing, the Board of Audit and Inspection released an audit report in September 2024 titled "Audit Report on Allegations of Illegalities Regarding the Relocation of the Presidential Office and Residence and Cost Expenditures."
The report stated that in April 2022, the presidential transition committee tentatively decided on the former Foreign Minister's official residence as the site for the presidential residence and selected 21gram as the interior construction firm.
The report further noted that the Presidential Secretariat confirmed in May 2022 that the construction plans included small-scale expansion work and requested 21gram to find a company qualified for such work. Consequently, 21gram requested Wondam General Construction, which held a general construction license, to participate in the expansion, and the work was carried out.
However, investigations revealed that 21gram effectively oversaw the entire construction process, including the expansion, rather than just the interior work.
The special counsel team's investigation concluded that Wondam General Construction, which held a general construction license, was used as a front to create an appearance of legality, while 21gram, which lacked the necessary qualifications, handled all the construction work.
21gram is known as a company that sponsored Covana Contents, an exhibition planning firm previously operated by First Lady Kim Keon-hee, and handled the design and construction of its office. The company's CEO and his wife are known to have close ties with the First Lady.
The special counsel team believes that the Board of Audit and Inspection also discovered these facts during the audit process but intentionally omitted them from the audit report, describing it as if 21gram had only been responsible for the interior work.
In connection with this, the special counsel team raided the Board of Audit and Inspection and the office of Commissioner Yoo on May 14 to secure relevant materials. Since then, they have summoned BAI officials one after another to investigate the circumstances surrounding the drafting of the report and any specific instructions given.
On June 16, the team requested an arrest warrant for a current BAI official who served as the audit team leader and oversaw the practical work, on charges including the drafting of false official documents. However, the court dismissed the warrant, and the team failed to secure the suspect.
The special counsel team plans to question Commissioner Yoo to verify the details of how the audit into the residence relocation was conducted, the instructions given, and whether there was any involvement from higher authorities, such as the presidential office.
(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.