FMR. VICE GYEONGGI-DO GOVERNOR ARRESTED

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Former vice governor of Gyeonggi-do Province Lee Hwa-young has been arrested for allegedly receiving bribes from Ssang Bang Wool Group. The vice chair of the group has also been arrested on bribery charges.

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The Suwon District Court issued an arrest warrant for former vice governor of Gyeonggi-do Province Lee Hwa-young on Wednesday morning. The court said the charges were clear enough and there was a possibility of evidence destruction. The court has also issued an arrest warrant for vice chair of Ssang Bang Wool Group on bribery charges. Lee served as outside director at Ssang Bang Wool for about a year starting in 2017. Prosecutors believe he continued using the group's corporate credit card in 2018 after resigning and received a car. He is suspected of having received more than 250 million won in bribes between August 2018 and early this year. Prosecutors say Ssang Bang Wool falsely hired Lee's friend and paid him wages, which also constitutes bribery. Prosecutors believe the group offered bribes to Lee, who was overseeing North Korea projects in the Gyeonggi-do provincial government, in order to acquire rights for inter-Korean projects. Sources say Lee was among those who attended a meeting in 2019 where Ssang Bang Wool discussed cooperation projects with North Korea. Prosecutors are also looking into whether Lee's son received special favors by getting a job at Ssang Bang Wool's subsidiary, where he worked for over a year. Prior to the arrest warrant examination on Tuesday, Lee told reporters he refused to acknowledge the accusations and would announce his stance later.