President of the Korean Sports Council Lee Ki-heung under police investigation, red light for third consecutive term

[Anchor]

Lee Ki-heung, the president of the Korean Sports Council, is under police investigation for obstruction of business.

He is accused of improperly hiring a friend of his daughter as an employee at the national team training center.

Kim Ki-beom reports.

[Report]

The Jincheon Athlete Village is a place where athletes wearing the Taegeuk mark sweat in preparation for the Olympics.

In August 2022, a job posting for a management position at the training dormitory was announced, and A, a college friend of President Lee's daughter, was hired.

Originally, this position had strict qualification requirements, including experience as a national team athlete, but under President Lee's direction, the requirements were significantly relaxed, allowing A, who has no background in sports, to pass.

It has also been confirmed that a Mr. Jeong, the deputy head of the athlete village and a close associate of President Lee, served as an interviewer and gave the highest score.

[Seo Young-seok/Public Service Management Officer: "The act of directing the hiring of a specific individual and enforcing it constitutes obstruction of the fair hiring process of the Sports Council, which falls under the criminal law's obstruction of business."]

It has been revealed that President Lee used abusive language and made verbal threats against employees who opposed him.

Additionally, he is accused of having a sports organization president pay approximately 80 million won for purchasing goods during the Paris Olympics, and in return, granting them the position of head of the Olympic Korea House.

The government's Office for Government Policy Coordination has requested police investigations into various allegations of misconduct against eight officials of the Sports Council, including President Lee.

In response, the Sports Council expressed that they cannot dismiss suspicions of illegal election interference, as this announcement came just two days before the organization's review for president re-election.

However, the controversy over President Lee's eligibility is growing, as it has been revealed that he did not attend the comprehensive audit by the Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee last month and instead held a drinking party at the Jincheon Athlete Village at the time of the audit.

KBS News, Kim Ki-beom.