Investigators raid ex-presidential secretary‘s home, office over election meddling scandal
By YonhapPublished : Nov. 28, 2017 - 15:31
Prosecution investigators raided the office and home of a former top aide to former President Lee Myung-bak on Tuesday as part of an investigation into allegations that the military’s cyberwarfare command attempted to interfere with the 2012 presidential election.
Kim Tae-hyo, a Sungkyunkwan University professor who served as a senior secretary to Lee, is suspected of involvement with the cyber command‘s operations to write Internet comments to sway public opinions in favor of the then-ruling party’s candidate Park Geun-hye.
Park ultimately won the election against opposition candidate Moon Jae-in, though she was removed from office earlier this year due to a massive corruption scandal involving one of her longtime friends. Moon succeeded her after winning the presidential election in May.
Investigators searched Kim’s home and office, and seized documents and computer files related to his duties as a presidential secretary. After scrutinizing the seized materials, prosecutors plan to call Kim in for questioning.
The investigation of Kim and other top presidential officials during the Lee administration is considered a step toward ultimately investigating the former president. Lee has recently categorically denied any knowledge or involvement in the military‘s alleged political interference.
The raid came after the investigation suffered a setback from a recent court decision to release a former national security adviser, Kim Kwan-jin, and former Deputy Defense Minister Lim Kwan-bin, who had been arrested on charges of involvement in the online operations. (Yonhap)