Lee secretary changes story on retirement home scandal

The special counsel team investigating suspected malpractice in the scrapped retirement home project for President Lee Myung-bak questioned Kim Baek-joon, the former presidential secretary for administrative affairs, on Saturday.

Kim returned home at around 12:50 a.m. Sunday after 10 hours of questioning at the counsel’s office in Seocho-dong, southern Seoul.

On his way out, the former aide took back an earlier statement and answered “No” to reporters’ questions about whether the Presidential Security Service paid around 11 million won ($10,000) in commission to a real estate agency on behalf of President Lee’s son Si-hyung. Si-hyung had tried to purchase the plot of land for his father’s retirement residence under his name.

Kim had told reporters before the investigation that the security body had paid the commission. Kim In-jong, the former chief of the presidential security service, denied paying the commission Thursday, when he was summoned for questioning.

Kim Baek-joon is often called President Lee’s “loyal butler”, and was two years senior to Lee at their alma mater Korea University.

The counsel asked the former secretary about the contracting process and the source of the money for the retirement residence and whether he participated in deciding the cost sharing for the land.

The retirement home project was scrapped over suspicion that Si-hyung and the presidential security service used public funds and violated relevant real estate laws in purchasing the land last year.

The counsel is expected to decide this week whether to summon first lady Kim Yoon-ok.

The special counsel has summoned almost all key figures and references involved in the scandal so far since the beginning of the probe on Oct. 15, including Si-hyung, the president’s eldest brother Sang-eun, and Kim Tae-hwan, a presidential security service official.

By Kim Young-won  (wone0102@heraldcorp.com)