South Korean prosecutors have requested a preliminary arrest warrant for a former spokesman of the Education Ministry on suspicion of receiving kickbacks from a local college, officials said Thursday.

Kim, 48, is believed to have received money and favors worth 60 million won ($51,000) from chairman Lee Jung-hak of Sohae College in Gusan, North Jeolla Province, according to the Jeonju District Prosecutor’s Office.

Lee has been investigated for allegedly embezzling some 14.6 billion won in school funds, some of which is suspected to have been used for bribes to high-ranking government officials. Investigators raided Kim’s office last week and summoned him several times for questioning recently.

Prosecutors reportedly have also procured evidence that Lee had been conducting illegal lobbying with politicians as well.

Kim, who was unavailable for comment, was transferred to state-run Korea National University of Education on Wednesday, the day prosecutors requested a warrant for him. The ministry claimed it had no specific knowledge of the investigation and that Kim had requested work at a university due to “health related reasons.”

According to the KNUE, Kim on Wednesday asked for paid leave for the remainder of the week. The university said they were unaware of the investigation and were “baffled” at the scandal.

Kim has held several posts at the ministry for over two decades and headed the office of planning and coordination at Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education before returning to the ministry last December as its spokesman.


By Yoon Min-sik
(minsikyoon@heraldcorp.com)