A weekly magazine reported Tuesday that former Korea Communications Commission Chairman Choi See-joong attempted to bribe pro-Lee Myung-bak lawmakers in 2008.

Choi denies all allegations, saying that he has no knowledge of the matter.

Choi is a close confidant of the president and has been dubbed his political mentor.

He served as the chief of the KCC since its launch in 2008 until this sudden resignation on Jan. 27.

According to the report, Choi gave 35 million won ($31,000) to three pro-Lee lawmakers before Chuseok, in 2008, all of which was returned to Choi. The report quoted one of the three lawmakers as saying that after a dinner with Choi before the Lunar New Year holiday in 2008, the former KCC chief said that he had “put it in the car.”

Upon inspection, the unnamed lawmaker found a shopping bag containing 20 million won in the back seat of his car. The lawmaker claimed that he immediately returned the bag to Jeong Yong-wook, former policy aide to Choi within the telecom regulator. Jeong resigned in October and is said to be doing business in Southeast Asia.

The unnamed lawmaker also said that Chung had delivered 10 million won and 5 million won to two other lawmakers, who also refused to accept the money.

Other reports have come out citing unnamed sources who said that Choi has been in the habit of “taking care of” pro-Lee lawmakers, giving them cash on special occasions such as the Lunar New Year and Chuseok holidays.

The source of the funds Choi used for such activities also remains unanswered, and speculation has risen that he may have accessed state funds. Others have raised suspicions that Choi may have acquired the funds from corporations.

The developments follow closely on the heels of earlier allegations that Choi’s aide Jeong had taken and offered bribes.

Jeong is under suspicion of receiving nearly 200 million won from Kim Hak-in, chairman of a college-level vocational school focused on broadcasting careers.

In addition, Jeong is alleged to have offered money to some lawmakers belonging to the parliamentary committee on culture, sports, tourism and broadcasting after a controversial media bill was passed into law in July 2009.

The revised law eliminated ownership restrictions in the media industry, allowing the cross-ownership of newspapers and broadcasting stations for the first time in nearly three decades.

By Choi He-suk  (cheesuk@heraldcorp.com)