Last Thursday, the nation’s top court confirmed a prison term and fines for former senior prosecutor Kim Kwang-joon for taking kickbacks worth at least 400 million won ($380,000) from suspects engaging in business irregularities.The 53-year-old ex-prosecutor was sentenced to seven years behind bars. He was also ordered to pay a criminal fine of 100 million won and, in restitution for the bribery, additional charges of 450 million won.Before Kim was indicted in late 2012, the two major law enforc

South Korean investigators are paying attention to the coming decision of the French court as to whether the country’s judicial authority will approve repatriation of the eldest daughter of Yoo Byung-eun, the de facto owner of the sunken ferry Sewol.While Korean law enforcement authorities are pinning their hopes on the possibility that the overseas court will soon lock up Yoo Seom-na, who was arrested near the Champs-Elysees in Paris on Tuesday, a key issue in the coming days will be whether th

This is the fifth installment in a series of articles on the upcoming local elections, exploring key issues and candidates in major cities. ― Ed.Incheon was not expected to be one of the several regions that would see neck-and-neck races in the June 4 local elections, as the incumbent Mayor Song Young-gil was leading Yoo Jeong-bok, the candidate from the ruling Saenuri Party, by more than 10 percentage points in early May.Recent polls, however, showed that the voter approval rating gap between t

Investigators said Monday that Yoo Byung-eun, the de facto owner of the sunken ferry Sewol, was found to have glossed over critical problems with the stability of the refurbished vessel.According to the prosecution, Kim Han-shik, the chief of Chonghaejin Marine Co. ― the operator of the Sewol ― notified Yoo of the risks of overloading it with freight early this year. Kim reportedly pointed out the ferry’s weakened ability to recover left-and-right balance when tilted due to an extension in the n

The prosecution has rolled up its sleeves in its efforts to seize the de facto owner of the ill-fated ferry Sewol after it failed to capture him despite a raid by investigators on his religious compound a day before.Investigators are expected to conduct a full-fledged search for Yoo Byung-eun as the Incheon District Court on Thursday approved the arrest warrant for the ex-Semo Group chief, who is suspected of engaging in a variety of business malpractices.In its unveiling of the background for i

A group of investigators dispatched by the prosecution forced their way into Geumsuwon, a religious compound in Anseong, Gyeonggi Province, in a bid to arrest the de facto owner of the sunken ferry Sewol at around 12:10 p.m. on Wednesday.The compound is owned by the Salvation Sect, which is allegedly led by former Semo Group chief Yoo Byung-eon, who is suspected of engaging a variety of misconducts since late 1990s when his group allegedly intentionally declared insolvency for a dubious purpose.

A group of investigators dispatched by the prosecution forced their way into Geumsuwon, a compound in Anseong, Gyeonggi Province, in a bid to arrest the de facto owner of the sunken ferry Sewol around at 12:10 p.m., Wednesday.(The Herald Business)The compound is owned by the Salvation Sect, which is allegedly led by former Semo Group chief Yoo Byung-eon. Yoo is suspected of hiding out in the compound, which is being protected by sect members.In a break from the strong resistance they had been pu

Prosecutors on Tuesday raised the possibility that Yoo Byung-eon, the de facto owner of the sunken ferry Sewol, is hiding out at a residence of a member of the Evangelical Baptist Church, dubbed the Salvation Sect, which is allegedly led by the former chief of the now-defunct Semo Group. The prosecution said that Yoo appears to have already escaped from Geumsuwon, the sect‘s headquarters in Anseong, Gyeonggi Province, in a low-key manner. It alleged that he is residing at a follower’s house in S