Seoul: Special counsel Min Joong-ki's team investigating suspicions surrounding former first lady Kim Keon Hee said Tuesday it has summoned Rep. Kweon Seong-dong of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) as a suspect for questioning this week about bribery allegations.
According to Yonhap News Agency, Kweon responded to the team's announcement by stating on Facebook that he will appear at the special counsel office at 10 a.m. Wednesday. He declared his innocence, saying, "I'm innocent of all charges raised by the special counsel side. That's why I'm confident," and accused the special counsel team of colluding with some media outlets and continuing political maneuvering.
Kweon is under suspicion of receiving 100 million won (US$72,000) in illegal political funds from a former official of the Unification Church, surnamed Yun, between 2021 and 2024. These funds were allegedly provided in exchange for supporting church events.
In addition to these allegations, the special counsel team is looking into claims that Kweon received a shopping bag containing cash from Unification Church leader Han Hak-ja. There are also suspicions that Yun and a shaman close to Kim recruited a significant number of Unification Church members to support Kweon in the PPP leadership election held in March 2023.
Kweon, who has served as a lawmaker for five terms, held the position of PPP's floor leader from December 2024 until June this year. Last week, the special counsel team conducted a raid on Kweon's residence and offices. Their efforts to secure the PPP membership list were unsuccessful due to resistance from the party.