POLICE ON BRIBERY CASE INVOLVING LEE

[Anchor Lead]

Police have revealed results of a supplementary probe into allegations that Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung attracted corporate donations for a football club in return for business favors while he was serving as Seongnam city mayor. The police concluded that bribery charges can be applied, reversing a previous police decision not to send the case to the prosecution.

[Pkg]

Police have concluded that a third party bribery charge can be applied to Chairman Lee Jae-myung of the main opposition Democratic Party in connection to alleged donations received by the municipal football club Seongnam FC when Lee was the city’s mayor. This comes seven months after the prosecution ordered the police to open a supplementary investigation into the case after Bundang Police Station in Gyeonggido Province decided not to send the case to prosecutors last September citing insufficent evidence. This decision led to a formal objection filed by those who first filed the complaint against Lee. Lee is accused of accepting some five billion won in donations for Seongnam FC from Doosan Engineering & Construction between 2014 and 2016 when he was the city’s mayor and owner of the football club. In return, Lee allegedly allowed a change in land use terms for a hospital site that Doosan owned in the Budang area so it could be turned into a commercial site. Police said the bribery charge application was not a legal challenge based on significant testimonies from related figures including the former chief of Doosan Engineering. A civil servant who oversaw working level matters at the time has also been named a principal offender along with Lee. Meanwhile, charge of offering the bribe has been applied to the former Doosan chief. The police however said they did not find circumstantial evidence suggesting that the five billion won went into the pockets of Lee’s camp and for the reason, cited bank account records of Lee’s close aides. Regarding why the previous decision has been reserved after one year, the police said the latest conclusion was possible thanks to the extensive investigation carried out by Bundang Police Station in the initial phase. Officers explained that following a comprehensive review of related facts and similar precedents, acknowledging a bribery charge for the case was not a tough legal challenge.