Published : Nov. 6, 2016 - 11:49
President Park Geun-hye's former senior secretary for civil affairs appeared before the prosecution for questioning over a string of corruption allegations on Sunday, becoming the third ex-presidential aide to Park to face a probe.
The state prosecution's special investigation team summoned Woo Byung-woo, who has been accused of abuse of authority and embezzlement.
"I will faithfully respond to prosecutors' questions," Woo said, surrounded by a throng of reporters.
Woo Byung-woo (Yonhap)
The summons came a week after he resigned as part of Park's personnel reshuffle aimed at assuaging growing public anger over an escalating influence-peddling scandal involving her close confidante Choi Soon-sil.
The probe into Woo opened after former special presidential inspector Lee Seok-soo referred Woo's case to the prosecution in August.
Prosecutors vowed to look into all of the allegations that have been raised against Woo and Woo's family.
Woo is alleged to have embezzled funds from a real-estate company run by his family. He is also purported to have peddled influence to help his son secure an easy job during his mandatory military service.
Another suspicion against Woo is that he has wrongly reported the total amount of his properties by excluding a swath of land in Hwaseong, about 60 kilometers south of Seoul. The piece of land at issue is alleged to be registered under a false name, but actually owned by his wife.
Regarding the real-estate property, prosecutors questioned Woo's wife and mother-in-law last Sunday and on Thursday, respectively.
The prosecutors are expected to wrap up their probe into Woo soon and announce the results of the investigation as early as this week. (Yonhap)