Arrest warrant sought for ex-lobbyist in bribery scandal

SEOUL, Nov. 23 (Yonhap) -- Prosecutors said Sunday they were seeking an arrest
warrant for a high school classmate of former President Roh Moo-hyun on
corruption charges linked to the 2005 sale of a securities company to a state-run
firm.

Jeong Hwa-sam, 62, has been under questioning since last week for his alleged
role in the merger of Sejong Securities Co. with the National Agricultural
Cooperative Federation, or Nonghyup.
Jeong is suspected to have received 3 billion won in bribes for helping arrange
the merger which brought huge profits to Sejong by pushing up its stock prices.
Prosecutors believe that Jeong and his 54-year-old brother, Gwang-yong, illegally
lobbied Nonghyup to choose Sejong as its merger partner to become a full-fledged
stock trading company.
Roh aides claim that Jeong has never been close to the ex-president who stepped
down earlier this year. They acknowledged that Jeong is a high school classmate
of Roh but disclosed that he did not hold any official government position.
"The focus of this probe is whether Sejong Securities was merged in a due process
and who has been involved in the lobbying," senior investigator Choi Jae-kyong
said without elaborating.
The former Sejong president involved in the merger, only identified by his
surname Hong, is also under investigation over allegations that he himself bribed
Nonghyup chief Chung Dae-kun to set up the merger.
Prosecutors said they plan to finish the probe by year's end.
samkim@yna.co.kr
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