Police have summoned and questioned Choi Eun-soon, mother of First Lady Kim Keon-hee, as a suspect in connection with allegations that Kim received improper gifts.
The National Police Agency's "Special Investigation Unit for Three Special Counsel Handover Cases" announced Wednesday that it had questioned Choi on suspicion of mediation bribery under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes. This marks the first time the special investigation unit, which is handling the remaining cases from the three special counsel probes, has questioned Choi.
Police are known to have examined Choi's connection to items found at the home of Kim Jin-woo's mother-in-law, including a painting by artist Lee Ufan titled "From Point No. 800298" and a Van Cleef & Arpels necklace. Kim Jin-woo is First Lady Kim's older brother.
The special counsel had previously concluded, after raiding the residence, that these items were given to First Lady Kim as payment for favors. However, as the investigation period expired, the special counsel was unable to make a final determination on whether Choi was involved in receiving the gifts and transferred the case to the police special investigation unit. The case involving Choi has been excluded from the list of cases to be transferred to the second comprehensive special counsel launched after the three special counsel probes.