Lawmaker Yoon Han-hong, from the People Power Party, was questioned for about nine hours by the Special Prosecutors' Office regarding allegations of favoritism in the selection of an unqualified contractor and changes to the site during the relocation of the presidential residence.
On August 1, the Special Prosecutors' Office summoned Yoon to their office in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province, as a suspect under allegations of abuse of power. The questioning took place from 10 a.m. to 7:05 p.m.
During the investigation, the Special Prosecutors focused on whether Yoon, while serving as the head of the task force for the presidential transition committee in April 2022, was involved in changing the candidate site from the Army Chief of Staff's residence to the Foreign Minister's residence after a preliminary site visit with Kim Gun-hee.
They also inquired whether he directed former Vice Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Kim O-jin to award a contract to the unqualified interior company '21 Gram' for the expansion of the residence, which has ties to Kim.
Yoon, however, denied all related allegations.
Before entering the Special Prosecutors' Office, Yoon told reporters, "The construction of the presidential residence took place after the transition team's activities concluded and after the inauguration of former President Yoon Suk-yeol, so it has nothing to do with me," denying the allegations.
The Special Prosecutors' Office plans to decide on whether to indict Yoon based on the results of the questioning without further summons.
Yoon, who has been elected three times in the Masan-Hoe district since the 20th National Assembly, joined Yoon Suk-yeol's presidential campaign in 2021, serving as the head of the comprehensive situation room and deputy head of the party's strategic planning department, overseeing the transition team's operations. Classified as a member of the 'Yoon-haek-gwan' group, he led the task force for the relocation of the presidential office and residence following the establishment of the new administration.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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