Seoul: A special counsel team conducted a raid on the presidential National Educational Commission (NEC) amid allegations of bribery involving its current chief and former first lady, Kim Keon Hee.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the raid was carried out by prosecutors and investigators from special counsel Min Joong-ki's team. They searched the commission's offices in the morning to gather potential evidence related to suspicions that NEC Chairperson Lee Bae-yong secured her ministerial position by presenting a gold gift to Kim.
The investigation into Lee was prompted by the discovery of a golden turtle weighing 10 don (37.5 grams) and a letter, reportedly penned by Lee to former President Yoon Suk Yeol and Kim, found during a separate raid on Kim's mother's residence. The special counsel team suspects that the turtle was gifted to Kim in exchange for Lee's appointment as the inaugural chief of the commission in September 2022. Lee offered her resignation on Monday, shortly after the special counsel raided her home.
In addition to the NEC, the special counsel team also executed a raid on the Presidential Security Service in the morning to obtain "necessary materials for a related investigation," further expanding the scope of their inquiry into the bribery allegations.