The nation’s top sportsorganization on Friday ordered the local football governing body to seek criminal investigation into a former employee for alleged corruption and to retrieve a large settlement paid to that employee.
The Korean Olympic Committee wrapped up its five-day audit into the Korea Football Association Friday, after the KFA came under fire last week for paying the ex-employee a settlement of 150 million won ($133,890) on his way out after he threatened to divulge corruption within the KFA.
The employee, who had handled KFA’s accounting and finances since 2006, was dismissed on Dec. 31 last year for allegedly attempting to steal football equipment and embezzling a large sum of the KFA’s money using corporate credit card reward points. The decision to pay him the settlement was reached on Jan. 13.
In a statement, the KOC’s special inspectors said the KFA should ask relevant authorities to further investigate the employee’s alleged “breach of duty.” The KOC also said the KFA ignored its own rules in paying the settlement and that the sum should be retrieved.
The KOC said the ex-employee must also be investigated for his threat to disclose KFA’s own corruption. He alleged that the KFA had set up slush funds.
The KOC urged the KFA to improve its administrative transparency and prevent recurrence of similar instances.
Earlier Friday, Cho Chung-yun, president of the KFA, denied slush funds allegations.
“Seventy percent of our employees are members of the labor union and they execute the budget,” Cho said, just before an emergency KFA board meeting of senior executives at a Seoul hotel.
“And the whole process is done electronically. It’s impossible to set up slush funds.”
Cho has scheduled a press conference for 2 p.m. Friday to address the matter.
Last year, the KFA operated on a 103.1 billion won budget, by far the largest among all local sports governing bodies.
In the aftermath, Kim Jin-kook, executive director at the KFA and the principal figure behind the settlement, resigned from his post.
(Yonhap News)
