Special prosecutor to question first lady

First lady Kim Yoon-ok

First lady Kim Yoon-ok will be questioned by the special prosecutor’s team over a controversial property deal for the first family’s now-scrapped retirement home project.

A decision on when and how to question Kim will be made soon.

Assistant special counsel Lee Chang-hoon said Monday that the team has decided to quiz the first lady over how her son, Lee Si-hyung, raised money to purchase the land in Naegok-dong, southern Seoul, last year.

“We are discussing the timing and the method with Cheong Wa Dae,” he said in a media briefing.

The questioning of Kim follows testimony from her son that she lent him 600 million won that she borrowed from a bank using her property as collateral.

“President Lee Myung-bak and Kim will visit Indonesia and Thailand from Wednesday to Sunday. We don’t think questioning her before the visits is proper,” the assistant special counsel said.

The team’s investigation is scheduled to end Nov. 14. The period can be extended for 15 days but extending it requires the President’s approval; so questioning may be made around Nov. 12 or 13.

“If we summon her, the interrogation may be around these dates. But we could question her by letter. Even if it is conducted by letter, we have many things to discuss with Cheong Wa Dae, such as the forms of questions and the deadline for the answers,” he said.

When asked about the possibility of questioning President Lee, he said the team will comment on it after finishing discussing Kim’s interrogation with the presidential office.

The special counsel will also question Yim Tae-hee who was presidential chief of staff at the time of the land deal. It will soon decide on whether to summon him or interrogate him by letter.

It has also sent written questions to the former owner of the land through an email because he is staying in the United States.

Si-hyung borrowed 600 million won from his mother and another 600 million won from his uncle, Lee Sang-eun, to buy the land for his father’s retirement residence.

He and the uncle were summoned for questioning on Oct. 25 and Nov. 1, respectively. <The Korea Times/Kim Rahn>