The marine special prosecutor's office said on the 8th, "We notified Pastor Kim Jang-hwan, chairman of Far East Broadcasting, to appear for a witness investigation by 9:30 a.m. today, but Pastor Kim did not reveal any position to the special prosecutor's office and did not attend the scheduled investigation." The special prosecutor's office suspects that Pastor Kim contacted Yoon Suk-yeol, the former president, to seek relief for former Marine Corps Brigade Commander Lim Seong-geun.
On that day, Special Prosecutor Jeong Min-young stated at a morning briefing, "We plan to resend a request for him to appear as a witness and undergo investigation at 9:30 a.m. on the 11th."
Special Prosecutor Jeong noted, "It has been confirmed that Pastor Kim's side is revealing several positions through the media, but the special prosecutor's team is not receiving any contact from them."
Earlier, the special prosecutor's office conducted searches on Yeuido Full Gospel Church, Far East Broadcasting, and Pastor Kim during its investigation into the 'relief lobbying suspicion' in July. Subsequently, the special prosecutor's office notified Pastor Kim to "appear for a witness investigation on the 8th at 9 a.m." However, Pastor Kim stated that he has "no reason or desire to respond to an investigation that embarrasses him, damages his honor, and harms Far East Broadcasting," and he did not attend the hearing that day.
The 'relief lobbying suspicion' claims that participants in the 'Macho Marine' group chat, including Lee Jong-ho, a key figure in the Deutsch Motors stock manipulation case, sought to lobby for the relief of former Brigade Commander Lim. Pastor Kim is also suspected of having contacted the former president's side for Lim's relief after the passing of Sergeant Chae Sang-byeong in 2023.