Vice minister in charge of sports offers to resign

Second Vice Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Park Jong-kil on Tuesday offered to resign over a scandal involving the illegal transfer of a private shooting range to his wife.

Park is also likely to face prosecution if found to have fabricated an official document in the process. Those who fabricate public documents could face up to 10 years in prison.

According to the revelation made by Rep. Lee Yong-sup of the Democratic Party, Park fabricated a Seoul Metropolitan Government document while changing the ownership of his privately owned shooting range in March, when he was appointed vice culture minister. High-ranking government officials are banned from running for-profit organizations.

Park attempted to change the ownership of the range to Mokdong Shooting Range. Inc., of which he was president, and then handed the presidency to his wife.

However, the city government and the National Tax Service refused to acknowledge the company as a legitimate operator of the lucrative facility. Park won a two-year right to run the shooting range in February and the right cannot be transferred to a third party. Park is said to have forged an SMG paper granting the company’s use of the shooting range to avoid having to bid again for the right to operate it.

Park served as a member of the Presidential Security Service team during President Park Chung-hee’s administration.

By Bae Ji-sook (baejisook@heraldcorp.com)