Kim Kyu-hwan, a former lawmaker of the United Future Party and now president of the Korea Coal Corporation (KOCOAL), who is suspected of receiving money and valuables from the Unification Church, filed a police complaint on the 22nd against former Unification Church World Headquarters chief Yoon Young-ho on charges of defamation and false accusation.
Jang Seung-ho, the former lawmaker's representative, held a press conference in front of the Korean National Police Agency's civil service office in Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, on the afternoon of the same day before submitting the complaint and said, "The claim that inside Cheon Jeong Gung, along with the words 'Use it well for the general election,' a box containing about 30 million won in cash was given to Kim Kyu-hwan is clearly false."
Jang stressed that the time when the cash was allegedly delivered was April 2020. Jang said, "(The former lawmaker) applied for nomination in the 2020 general election, but was cut off (excluded from nomination) on Mar. 6 of the same year and announced on Mar. 24 that he would not run," adding, "Why would anyone give 30 million won for general election funds to someone who had already been cut off?"
Jang also pointed out that the testimony of former Deputy Minister Yoon, the key figure in the Unification Church's alleged lobbying of political circles, changed multiple times. Jang said, "It is known that Yoon Young-ho testified consistently in court, but there is no consistency at all and he appeared to be engaging in a political transaction," adding, "The public is seeing that he is repeatedly telling lies as if to deceive the investigation."
When asked by reporters whether the former lawmaker had ever attended a Unification Church-related event, Jang said, "While serving as a lawmaker, he was invited to churches, cathedrals, and various religious events to deliver congratulatory remarks or lectures," but added, "Any lecture at a Unification Church event was after June 2020, when his term ended, and it has nothing to do with illegal funds."
An internal document shows that from June 2020 for about seven months, the former lawmaker was appointed as an advisor to the International Association of Parliamentarians for Peace (IAPP), established by the Unification Church, and received 14 million won, prompting suspicion that he accepted improper money. When asked by reporters that day what relationship the former lawmaker had with a person surnamed Song, the former International Association of Parliamentarians for Peace (IAPP) president, Jang answered, "I only know that Song played an intermediary role at the IAPP, and that is all I know."
The National Office of Investigation (NOI) of the Korean National Police Agency, which is investigating the Unification Church's alleged lobbying of political circles, has questioned eight people, including suspects. Chun Jae-soo, a lawmaker of the Democratic Party of Korea (former Minister of the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries), appeared at the Korean National Police Agency on the 19th and was questioned for 14 hours. Police are also questioning Unification Church leader Han Hak-ja, as well as those in charge of funds and accounting, one after another.
Starting that day, police augmented accounting personnel and expanded the investigation team from the existing 23 members to 30.