Police investigating allegations that former Seoul City Council member Kim Kyung lobbied Democratic Party of Korea lawmakers with money and valuables around the 2023 Gangseo District chief by-election in Seoul are summoning and questioning related figures one after another.
The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency's Public Crime Investigation Unit on the afternoon of the 11th summoned former Seoul City Council chair a person surnamed Yang and a Democratic Party of Korea party official a person surnamed Choi as suspects and is currently investigating.
Earlier, police secured the "golden PC." It was used by the city council's policy aide who assisted the former council member Kim, and about 120 call recording files were stored on it.
The recordings are said to contain discussions in which the former council member Kim talked about delivering nomination donations to key figures in the Democratic Party of Korea to secure the Gangseo District chief nomination.
Police the previous day also summoned as a reference witness a person surnamed B, an aide to lawmaker A of the Democratic Party of Korea. B is the person identified as having, in a call with Kim about three months before the Gangseo District chief by-election, provided lawmaker A's donation account. Afterward, 5 million won was actually remitted to lawmaker A's donation account under the name of the accounting manager for Kim's support committee.
Lawmaker A said they did not know at the time that Kim's closest associate had made the donation and that the money was returned after the recent controversy erupted.