Corruption Investigation Office Assigns Alleged MFDS Lobbying Case Involving Rep. Kim Seung-won to Investigation Division 1

The Corruption Investigation Office for High-Ranking Officials has begun investigating a complaint regarding allegations that Democratic Party of Korea Representative Kim Seung-won lobbied the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety during the vetting process for a former Minister of Justice candidate.

The office assigned the case to Investigation Division 1 yesterday (September 29) after a whistle-blower, identified as A, filed a complaint against Representative Kim on charges including abuse of power and accepting bribes through mediation.

The former ministerial candidate has been accused of contacting then-Minister of Food and Drug Safety Kim Gang-lip in 2021 at the request of a broker surnamed Yang regarding clinical trial approval for the pharmaceutical startup Genencell, thereby exerting undue influence on the outcome.

Meanwhile, Genencell founder Kang Se-chan was sentenced to four years in prison and a fine of 40 million won, and was taken into custody in court today during his appellate trial on charges including obstruction of official duties by deceit and violation of the Act on the Aggravated Punishment, etc. of Specific Economic Crimes related to the alleged Ministry of Food and Drug Safety lobbying.

The court stated, "It is evident that the defendant made a request through Kim Seung-won regarding clinical trials handled by the Minister of Food and Drug Safety, and it appears that 600 million won was paid in return to a broker surnamed Yang."
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.