Two Lawmakers Arrested

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Two sitting opposition lawmakers were arrested in the early hours Thursday on bribery charges. Both representatives of the Liberty Korea Party have denied the accusations.​

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Liberty Korea Party Assembly Member Choi Kyung-hwan has been taken under arrest. The Seoul Central District Prosecutors Office said Choi was arrested because he is under criminal suspicion and that he was likely to destroy evidence. Choi is suspected of receiving 100 million won in cash from the National Intelligence Service in return for providing budget favors in 2014, while serving as deputy prime minister and minister of finance. During the deliberation of his arrest warrant on Wednesday, Choi reportedly denied that he accepted the money. Prosecutors have secured testimonies from two former NIS officials saying that they personally either approved or delivered the money in question to Choi. The prosecutors plan to find out if Choi had accepted other bribes as well. Another Liberty Korea Party lawmaker, Lee Woo-hyun, has also been arrested. The judges said they decided to issue an arrest warrant for him for the same reasons as for Choi. Lee is being accused of receiving over one billion won in slush funds from some 20 local politicians and entrepreneurs. Two of the politicians and entrepreneurs who gave money to Lee have already been arrested and are standing trial. The two arrested lawmakers strongly denied the accusations of bribery when the scandals erupted.