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The Anti-Corruption Investigation Division of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, which has handled the nation's largest special investigations, is accelerating what is effectively its final round of major case work, three months ahead of the abolition of the Prosecution Service. The office's Anti-Corruption Investigation Divisions 1 through 3, whose staffing has been sharply reduced due to reassignments to special counsel teams, are expected to reach final dispositions as early as next month, focusing on major corporate and power-related corruption cases.
According to legal circles on the 6th, the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office's Anti-Corruption Investigation Divisions 1 through 3 are respectively investigating a bribery allegation involving a former People Power Party aide, alleged improper transactions at Homeplus, and embezzlement and breach-of-trust allegations against the chairman of Korea Land Trust. With the abolition of the Prosecution Service imminent, the prosecutors must decide whether to indict in cases currently under investigation or hand them over to other investigative agencies such as the police, making these cases likely to be the last major investigations conducted by the Central District's Anti-Corruption Investigation Division.
Anti-Corruption Investigation Division 1 last month searched Mr. A, a former People Power Party aide, and a medical device company. Mr. A is suspected of receiving tens of millions of won in cash and valuables from the company over about three years starting in 2021, and of providing favors such as hosting policy debates organized by a lawmaker's office to have the company's products included in health insurance coverage. The investigation team plans to summon Mr. A and others for questioning as soon as it completes analysis of the seized items.
Anti-Corruption Investigation Division 2 is focusing its efforts on allegations surrounding Homeplus's issuance of short-term bonds. Prosecutors suspect that MBK Partners, aware of the possibility of a downgrade in Homeplus's short-term bond credit rating, issued commercial paper and electronic short-term bonds before filing for corporate rehabilitation, shifting losses onto investors. The investigation team recently questioned a Homeplus finance executive as a suspect and is reportedly considering summoning MBK Partners executives.
Anti-Corruption Investigation Division 3 has advanced to the final stages of its investigation into allegations that the Korea Land Trust chairman siphoned off hundreds of billions of won in affiliate funds for personal use. A prosecution official said, "Although staffing is severely lacking, we plan to ensure that important anti-corruption cases are disposed of before the Prosecution Service is abolished."
