The special investigator team led by Min Jung-ki, which is investigating allegations against Kim Keon-hee, conducted a search of former Black Pearl Investment CEO Lee Jong-ho on the 19th and notified him of a summons for next week.
On the same day, the special investigation team searched Lee's home and vehicle in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, securing one mobile phone. They also notified him to appear as a suspect on the 21st at 10 a.m. for questioning.
The search warrant specified allegations of violating the Attorney-at-Law Act. The core of the allegations is that Lee Jeong-pil, known as the account manager for Kim Keon-hee and a key player in the initial stock price manipulation of Deutsch Motors, received 81 million won from June 2022 to February 2023 in 25 transactions and helped him receive a suspended sentence.
Lee was also searched at his home on the 10th by a special investigation team looking into the death of Chae Sang-byeong and allegations of lobbying for the plea of former Marine Corps 1st Division Commander Lim Seong-geun. After having his mobile phone seized at that time, he prepared a new device, which Kim Keon-hee's special investigation team seized on this day.
Lee is reported to maintain that he never received money from Lee. He is considered a key target of the Kim Keon-hee special investigation team's probe into the stock price manipulation case involving Deutsch Motors, serving as its 'control tower'.
Described as a close aide to Kim Keon-hee, he was indicted along with former Deutsch Motors chairman Kwon Oh-soo and eight others for involvement in the stock price manipulation of Deutsch Motors that occurred from 2009 to 2012, with a suspended prison sentence confirmed by the Supreme Court.
In this case, Lee was revealed to have led stock price manipulation with former chairman Kwon and others using borrowed accounts classified as the second phase of operations from October 2010 to December 2012. The court determined that three accounts belonging to Kim Keon-hee and one account of her mother, Choi Eun-soon, were utilized for stock price manipulation, and Lee was identified as the individual managing Kim's accounts.
Lee emerges in multiple allegations, including stock price manipulation suspected to be backed by Kim Keon-hee, and lobbying for relief for Im Seong-geun and Jo Byeong-no. The special investigation team is expected to intensively question him about the substance of these allegations and the involvement of Kim Keon-hee based on the analysis of the seized items.