South Korea: Minor opposition leader questioned for election meddling allegations linked to ex-first lady

South Korea’s Reform Party leader Lee Jun-seok was questioned for nearly 10 hours on Sunday by a special counsel team regarding allegations of election interference tied to former First Lady Kim Keon Hee.
Lee cooperated with the special counsel team led by Min Joong-ki from 10 a.m. to 7:40 p.m., established in July to probe corruption and other claims related to the former First Lady.
This was Lee’s first interrogation by the special counsel. The team is investigating accusations of collusion between Lee, former President Yoon, and his wife, Kim, in manipulating candidate nominations for the 2022 parliamentary by-elections.
Former President Yoon, on the other hand, faced over eight hours of questioning by the special counsel team on Saturday over corruption allegations involving his wife.
Yoon is alleged to have been complicit in his wife’s receipt of free opinion polls and a valuable painting, as well as violating election laws by allegedly making false statements about his wife during a 2021 debate.
The special counsel team is also examining whether Yoon played a role in his wife’s acceptance of luxury gifts from individuals like Lee Bae-yong in exchange for favors.
Yoon has refuted all accusations against him, as stated by his legal representatives.
Yoon’s lawyer mentioned that the former President was unaware of his wife’s acceptance of luxury gifts when asked by reporters.
Yoon’s recent questioning is likely to be his final appearance before the special counsel team, with the investigation set to conclude on December 28.
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Lee Jun-seok, Min Joong-ki, Kim Keon Hee, Yoon Suk Yeol, Myung Tae-kyun, Kim Young-sun, Lee Bae-yong