Lawmaker Yoon Han-hong of the People Power Party appeared before the Special Prosecutors' Office on August 1, facing allegations of improper involvement in the selection of a construction company during the relocation of the presidential residence.
According to Yonhap News, Yoon arrived at the office of the second Special Prosecutors' team at around 9:30 a.m. as a suspect under investigation for abuse of authority.
Yoon, who served as the head of the task force for the relocation of the presidential office during the Yoon Suk-yeol administration, is accused of improperly intervening in the site change and contractor selection process.
The Special Prosecutors' team is investigating the circumstances surrounding the change of the site after Yoon conducted three preliminary site visits with Kim Geon-hee, the spouse of President Yoon, in April 2022.
Initially, the presidential residence was set to be relocated to the Army Chief of Staff's residence, but the location was changed to the Foreign Minister's residence without clear justification following Kim's site visits, according to the Special Prosecutors' assessment.
Yoon is also under suspicion of directing former Vice Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Kim O-jin to select the interior company 21gram, which has ties to Kim Geon-hee.
The Special Prosecutors' team suspects that this led to 21gram, a company without a general construction license, receiving preferential treatment in securing the contract for the relocation and expansion of the residence.
21gram previously sponsored exhibitions organized by Kobana Contents, a company run by Kim Geon-hee, and is known to have close ties with the spouse of its CEO.
Since conducting a search and seizure operation against Yoon in March as part of their first compulsory investigation, the Special Prosecutors' team has continued their inquiry.
They plan to question Yoon regarding the site change, the contractor selection process, and any possible directives or interventions from higher-ups.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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