The second special prosecutor team, led by Kwon Chang-young, has summoned Won Hee-ryong, the former Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, again regarding allegations of changes to the route of the Seoul-Yangpyeong Expressway.
On July 2, the special prosecutors announced that they had sent a second summons requiring Won to appear on July 8.
Previously, the special prosecutors had requested that Won appear for questioning on July 3 regarding allegations of abuse of power. However, the summons was reportedly not delivered twice due to the absence of the recipient.
The allegations concerning the route change of the Seoul-Yangpyeong Expressway suggest that the endpoint was shifted from Yangseo-myeon in Yangpyeong County, Gyeonggi Province, to Gangsaeng-myeon, where land owned by First Lady Kim Geon-hee's family is located, following the inauguration of the Yoon Suk Yeol administration.
It has been revealed that the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport considered the endpoint change after a preliminary feasibility study was approved in 2021. When suspicions arose, Won canceled the project.
The previous special prosecutor team, led by Min Jung-ki, indicted a Ministry of Land official linked to the allegations, but they were unable to clarify the charges against Won, who is considered the 'higher-up' in the directive for the endpoint change.
The special prosecutors have placed a travel ban on Won and are continuing their investigation with relevant officials from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.
Meanwhile, Won stated on Facebook the day before, "If making a political decision that paralyzed a national project is a crime, I will not evade it. If there is a crime, arrest me without making excuses."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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