The former head of local telecom giant KT Corp. was called in for questioning by prosecutors on Thursday for the third time for alleged managerial misconduct and creating slush funds.

Lee Suk-chae, who resigned early last month over the allegations, appeared at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office in southern Seoul at around 10 a.m. to undergo questioning.

Prosecutors previously questioned him twice last week over suspicions that he stashed around 2 billion won ($1.8 million) worth of secret funds by inflating salary figures paid to the firm’s executives.

Lee also allegedly inflicted huge losses on KT, the country’s top fixed-line operator and No. 2 mobile carrier, through poor investments and inking dubious business deals.

Prosecutors said the former chairman allegedly ordered KT employees to invest in online education and subway network systems, causing the company hundreds of billions of won in losses.

Prosecutors also suspect that Lee sold 39 office buildings of the company at below market prices, causing 86.9 billion won in losses to KT and its investors, they added.

Lee has been intensively grilled over whether he bulldozed through the investment and sell-out plans even though he knew that they could cause huge losses to the company and if there were procedural problems in the process, the prosecutors said.A close aide to former President Lee Myung-bak, Lee took the helm of the mobile carrier in 2009. He also served as a telecommunications minister in 1995. (Yonhap News)