Former Oceans Minister Chun Jae-soo seems on the Seodaemun Ward police station in Seoul, Friday, to bear questioning over allegations he took bribes from the Unification Church. Joint Press Corps
Former Oceans Minister Chun Jae-soo appeared earlier than police Friday to bear questioning over allegations he took bribes from the Unification Church.
Chun arrived at Seoul’s Seodaemun Ward police station after being summoned as a suspect in a case courting again to 2018 when he’s accused of receiving 20 million received ($13,560) in money and a Bulgari watch value 10 million received from the church.
On the time, Chun was a lawmaker of the ruling Democratic Occasion of Korea (DPK) and he stays a lawmaker although he resigned as oceans minister final week following a former church official’s disclosure of the allegations.
“I state clearly that there was no unlawful acceptance of cash and items from the Unification Church in any way,” he advised reporters outdoors the police station.
In keeping with the previous church official, Yun Younger-ho, the cash and watch got in alternate for Chun’s assist in pushing church tasks, together with the potential building of an undersea tunnel connecting Korea and Japan.
“The Korea-Japan undersea tunnel was designed in order that if Japan made 100 in earnings, Busan would make nothing however losses,” Chun mentioned, referring to the southeastern port metropolis that features his constituency. “Opposing that was my political conviction.”
Police are anticipated to interrogate him in regards to the money and watch based mostly on indications he attended an undersea tunnel-related occasion in 2018 and exchanged communications with a church-founded discussion board as just lately as October.
Along with the alleged bribe-taking, police are wanting into an incident the place a church-affiliated group bought 500 copies of Chun’s ebook in 2019 for a complete of 10 million received.
Requested by reporters if he has ever met Unification Church chief Han Hak-ja, Chun didn’t reply.
As a part of the probe, investigators have raided his residence in Busan, the workplace he used as oceans minister in Sejong, his workplace on the Nationwide Meeting and Han’s residence in Gapyeong, east of Seoul.
Chun is the primary of three present and former politicians booked within the bribery case to be summoned by the police. The 2 different suspects are former DPK lawmaker Lim Jong-seong and former United Future Occasion lawmaker Kim Gyu-hwan.
