Misuse of Funds

Описание: [Anchor Lead]

Arrest warrants for former presidential secretaries Lee Jae-man and Ahn Bong-geun have finally been served. The two close aides to ousted president Park Geun-hye were detained for taking money from the National Intelligence Service. The former secretaries say that they received the money at the ex-president’s order, claims that may lead the prosecution to directly question the Park Geun-hye on the matter.

[Pkg]

The warrant review section of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office issued arrest warrants for former presidential secretaries Lee Jae-man and Ahn Bong-geun. The court determined that their criminal charges have been explained and there is concern over destruction of evidence. Previously, Lee had stated to the investigating prosecutors that he had received money from the National Intelligence Service's fund earmarked for "special activities" at the order of former president Park Geun-hye. He added that the money was managed separately and he delivered the money to the president whenever she demanded. His testimony that the National Intelligence Service funds marked for special activities was not a bribe reportedly came while defending himself against the charges. In the wake of his statements, the prosecution's investigation is likely to expand into determining whether the ousted president had received slush funds. Since Lee said that he had acted on ex-president Park's instructions, the prosecutors believe that direct questioning of the former president is inevitable in order to verify his claim. The key is to find out whether former president Park had actually ordered it and whether a slush fund existed. Following the court's issuance of arrest warrants, the prosecution plans to expand its investigation into the three detained presidential secretaries, Jeong Ho-seong, Lee Jae-man, and Ahn Bong-geun, described as the "doorknob trio."