Ex-Supreme Court judge questioned in connection with development scandal

Prosecutors questioned former Supreme Court Justice Kwon Soon-il on Wednesday as part of an investigation in connection with a high-profile property development scandal. Kwon, who served as a Supreme Court justice from 2014-2020, appeared at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors Office earlier in the day to face questioning as a suspect, legal sources said. The investigation centers on allegations that several former high-ranking government officials were illegally promised 5 billion won (US$3.6 million) each by management firm Hwacheon Daeyu. Hwacheon Daeyu is at the center of a high-profile development corruption scandal involving a lucrative apartment development project in the Daejang-dong district of Seongnam, launched while Democratic Party Chair Lee Jae-myung was the mayor of the city. Kwon has been accused of having illegally served as an adviser for Hwacheon Daeyu between November 2020 and September 2021 for a reward of 150 million won without officially registering himself as a lawyer. Suspic ions against him also include that he used his casting vote in favor of Lee Jae-myung, then Gyeonggi mayor, in the top court's 2020 acquittal of him in connection with official election law violation charges, in return for alleged financial rewards. Prosecutors have indicted former lawmaker Kwak Sang-do and former special counsel Park Young-soo among the six people accused of receiving or being promised 5 billion won from the management firm, while expanding the investigation into the other four, including Kwon. Source: Yonhap News Agency