POLICE ISSUES ARREST WARRANT ON LH EMPLOYEE

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Police have requested an arrest warrant for an incumbent employee of the Korea Land and Housing Corporation for the first time in a month after launching an investigation into a speculative land investment scandal surrounding the public agency. The accused is a different person from other employees who were previously suspected of involving in the speculative property investment. Police believe the employee in question is the key figure in the scandal who leaked internal information to 36 people, including his acquaintances and relatives.

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A lot of land in Noonsa-dong, Gwangmyeong, Gyeonggi-do Province. In March 2017, a group of eight people purchased it under joint ownership.

[Soundbite] Resident(VOICE MODIFIED) : "There is not only one owner. The price of the land has surged a lot. It has significantly jumped from just last year let alone 3 or 4 years ago."

The owners are presumed to be family members, relatives and acquaintances. Six of them have addresses in Jeonju, Jeollabuk-do Province. A Jeonju-based corporation is also the owner of another lot close by. It is believed to be a family business run by some of the eight joint owners.

[Soundbite] Realtor(VOICE MODIFIED) : "Ordinary people don't buy such land for investment. If they purchased forests and fields, they were 100 percent certain."

This is not the only example. People linked to them purchased land measuring some 20,000 square meters in March 2017. The transaction is worth roughly 2.9 billion won.
Police believe a Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) employee is at the center of these speculative land purchases, although his name is not on contracts. According to police, the LH official, identified just as "A," was in charge of developing a new town in the area in March 2017. Police accused the official of leaking confidential business information to promote his own interest and help other people make profit. Police have discovered the LH official is suspected of engaging in speculative purchases of 22 lots of land, which also involves 36 more people. Police have requested an arrest warrant for the official - the first official to have a warrant requested.