Comprehensive Special Counsel Investigation Extended by One Month; Success Hinges on Special Prosecutors

Attention is focused on whether the 2nd Comprehensive Special Counsel team, led by Kwon Chang-young, which is investigating remaining allegations following the three major special counsel probes, can achieve final results during the additional 30-day extension of the investigation period.

The National Assembly held a plenary session today (July 21) and passed an amendment to the Special Counsel Act, which extends the investigation period by 30 days and increases the number of dispatched officials by 20.

Once the amendment is promulgated following a Cabinet meeting and the special counsel team receives approval for the extension from the President, the team's investigation period, which was scheduled to end in three days, will be extended until August 23.

During the additional investigation period, the special counsel team is expected to prioritize accelerating the investigation into allegations related to the relocation of the presidential residence.

The investigation into the residence relocation, led by Special Prosecutor Jin Eul-jong, is considered the most successful among the comprehensive special counsel team's investigations.

The first individuals to be detained by the comprehensive special counsel team were Kim Dae-ki, former Chief of Staff to the President, and Yoon Jae-soon, former Secretary for General Affairs, who are accused of illegal misappropriation of budget during the residence relocation process.

With the detention of Audit Commissioner Yoo Byung-ho following a court-issued arrest warrant yesterday (July 20) in connection with allegations of a cover-up audit regarding the residence relocation, the special counsel team plans to focus its investigative capabilities on identifying the path of requests to dismiss the audit and confirming whether higher-ups in the presidential office were involved.

The special counsel team suspects that requests regarding the residence relocation audit were delivered to Commissioner Yoo through the Presidential Office's Management Secretary's Office and the Public Discipline Secretary's Office.

Circumstances have also been captured where Commissioner Yoo referred to former President Yoon Suk Yeol as the boss and communicated with presidential office officials multiple times during the residence relocation audit process.

The special counsel team plans to summon Kim Keon-hee, the spouse of former President Yoon Suk Yeol, tomorrow (July 22) to investigate allegations that she received valuables, including Dior clothing, in exchange for awarding the residence relocation construction contract to the interior design firm 21gram.

Regarding allegations that the Presidential Security Service signed split contracts to cover the construction costs for 21gram, the team has also booked former Minister of National Defense Kim Yong-hyun and is coordinating a schedule for his investigation.

The investigation into the notebook of former Defense Security Command Commander Noh Sang-won, which was the greatest point of interest when the special counsel team was launched, has not been gaining speed.

Previously, in May, the special counsel team conducted on-site inspections of the Yeonpyeong Island detention facility, the Capital Defense Command B-1 bunker, and the 2nd Hanawon, which were mentioned as detention sites in the Noh Sang-won notebook.

However, it is reported that the team is having difficulty obtaining testimony from former Commander Noh regarding the contents of the notebook.

The special counsel team has stated that if former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun continues to refuse summons regarding the Noh Sang-won notebook, it will consider requesting an arrest warrant.

Regarding the allegations of leaking secrets from the investigation into the death of Corporal Chae, the request for an arrest warrant for former Public Discipline Secretary Lee Si-won was the first attempt to secure detention, but it was dismissed by the court.

The comprehensive special counsel team has not yet attempted to secure detention regarding the allegations of changing the Yangpyeong Expressway route, covering up overseas gambling by the Unification Church, or covering up the Deutsch Motors investigation.

The special counsel team plans to summon former Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Won Hee-ryong the day after tomorrow (July 23) to verify allegations that legal procedures were not followed during the process of canceling the Yangpyeong Expressway project.

Regarding the allegations of covering up the Unification Church investigation, former Commissioner General of the Korean National Police Agency Yoon Hee-keun was summoned for the second time on this day.

In cases handled by Special Prosecutor Kwon Young-bin, who caused controversy while engaging in a war of nerves with the Cho Eun-seok insurrection special counsel team, there is a particular need for extensive reinforcement of charges during the remaining period.

Arrest warrants requested by Special Prosecutor Kwon Young-bin's investigation team for former Prosecutor General Sim Woo-jung, former Supreme Prosecutors' Office Planning and Coordination Department Head Jeon Mu-gon, former Korea Coast Guard Commissioner General Kim Jong-wook, and former Korea Coast Guard Planning and Coordination Officer Ahn Seong-sik in connection with allegations of participation in the insurrection were all consecutively dismissed by the court.

Previously, regarding former Korea TV (KTV) President Lee Eun-woo, who had already been indicted by the insurrection special counsel team on charges including abuse of power and was undergoing trial, Special Prosecutor Kwon Young-bin's team newly applied charges of insurrection propaganda. Despite emphasizing the symbolism of being the first arrest warrant request by the comprehensive special counsel, the court dismissed it, stating that there is room for dispute over whether the crime was established, causing the team to lose face.

The special counsel team is also expected to conclude its investigation soon regarding allegations that former National Intelligence Service Director Cho Tae-yong and former National Intelligence Service 1st Deputy Director Hong Jang-won delivered messages justifying martial law to the United States and other parties.

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