The second special prosecutor team, led by Kwon Chang-young, is investigating allegations of a flawed audit related to the relocation of the presidential residence during Yoon Suk Yeol's administration. On June 16, the special prosecutors announced they had sought an arrest warrant for a current auditor at the Board of Audit and Inspection, identified only as Son, on charges of falsifying official documents.
Son was the head of the audit team overseeing the relocation of the presidential residence and is accused of preparing false reports by manipulating evidence during the audit process.
After taking office, President Yoon relocated the presidential office to the Ministry of National Defense building in Yongsan and moved the residence to the former minister of foreign affairs' residence.
Following these relocations, several allegations arose regarding the selection of construction firms and project costs. In October 2022, civic group Participatory Budgeting requested a national audit, prompting the investigation.
After nearly two years of auditing, the Board of Audit and Inspection released a report in September 2024 detailing illegalities concerning the relocation of the presidential office and residence and the associated expenditures.
The report indicated that in April 2022, the Presidential Transition Committee and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs tentatively decided on the former minister's residence as the new presidential residence and selected 21Gram as the interior construction firm.
It also noted that after the Presidential Office confirmed in May 2022 that the construction plans included minor expansion work, they requested 21Gram to find a qualified contractor for the expansion, and 21Gram engaged WonDam Construction, a firm with a general construction license, to carry out the work.
However, investigations revealed that 21Gram effectively oversaw all aspects of the construction, including the expansion, rather than just the interior work as stated in the audit report.
The special prosecutors concluded that the Board of Audit and Inspection was aware of these facts during the audit but intentionally concealed them in the report, misrepresenting that 21Gram was only responsible for the interior work.
In connection with this, the special prosecutors conducted a search and seizure at the Board of Audit and Inspection and at Yu Byeong-ho, a member of the audit committee, on May 14 to secure relevant materials.
They have since summoned Board officials to investigate the circumstances surrounding the report's preparation and directives.
Following Son's arrest, the special prosecutors plan to continue their investigation into the involvement of higher-ups, including Yu, who served as the Secretary General of the Board during Yoon's administration.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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