Broker in nuke reactor graft scandal gets prison term

BUSAN (Yonhap) ― A district court on Friday sentenced a broker in a high-profile corruption scandal surrounding nuclear reactors to three years and six months in prison for taking bribes from a local builder.

Oh Hee-taek was found guilty of accepting 1.78 billion won ($1.5 million) in kickbacks from Hankook Jungsoo Industries Co. in exchange for helping the local water treatment firm win its bid to take part in the government’s project to build nuclear reactors in the United Arab Emirates.

The eastern branch of the Busan District Court also ordered Oh to pay 1.78 billion won in fines. South Korea signed a contract with the UAE in 2009 to build four nuclear reactors.

During the probe, Oh was found to have provided some of the bribes to former vice commerce minister Park Young-june in exchange for influence peddling.