Prosecutors conclude 'not guilty' after four and a half years... "Mrs. Kim is different from the helper."

[Anchor]
Today's results, which you saw earlier, came four and a half years after the prosecution launched an investigation. Let's take a closer look at what specific explanations were made and with reporter Shin Ji-won who covered this case. Please come in. The prosecution held a briefing today and explained the background of the case for quite a long time, how did it go?

[Reporter]
Today, the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office held a briefing at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, indicting Yoon Suk Yeol's wife, Kim Gun-hee, and Kim's mother. It took about four hours from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the briefing room of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office. The investigation team, including Cho Sang-won, the 4th chief prosecutor of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, and Choi Jae-hoon, the second head of the anti-corruption investigation, attended the meeting. Prosecutors prepared a 50-page PPT, citing appeals court rulings in the Deutsche Motors stock price manipulation case and statements from officials in the case, explaining the reasons for the non-prosecution.

[Anchor]
I had a four-hour marathon briefing, what was the atmosphere like?

[Reporter]
Some of the comments allowed for filming were conducted by the 4th chief prosecutor, and the chief prosecutor himself displayed the PPT screen and explained it in a private format. Mrs. Kim's account transaction details and legal issues were dealt with in considerable detail. The investigation team once raised its voice when questions to this effect were repeated, such as whether the prosecution accepted Kim's position as it was or whether it was a thorough investigation. There was a point where Mrs. Kim was partially mentioned in the local area of the main gun secured during the investigation. I don't know the substance of the specific question, it doesn't seem to be meaningful. For this purpose, I also avoided an immediate answer.

[Anchor]
As mentioned in our related report earlier, the prosecution judged Kim not guilty because there was no evidence that she knew about market manipulation, isn't this the purpose? However, looking at the previous disclosures, didn't the account directly managed by Mrs. Kim sign the sale seven seconds after an employee at a securities company contacted Lee Joo-po?

[Reporter]
That's right. It's an account that was controversial, and it was run by Mrs. Kim herself. The prosecution also explained that it was very suspicious about this. Suspicions arose that six accounts were used, and three of them were looked into. Among them, the Daishin Securities account you mentioned raised suspicions that the sale was actually a settlement transaction when the order was actually signed from Kim's account seven seconds after the owner contacted the employee to sell it directly. The prosecution also suspected in this situation that Mrs. Kim was contacted by former Deutsche Chairman Kwon Oh-soo and sold it. However, former chairman Kwon also stated that he had never directly informed Kim of the manipulation of the market price, and Kim also stated to the effect that she has no memory because it was a long time ago, so it has not been confirmed whether there is any specific circumstance that could be considered a communication.

[Anchor]
Doubtful, but no evidence was found. Wasn't Jeonju Sohn convicted of aiding and abetting in the Deutsche Motors stock price manipulation case last month? This couldn't have been applied to Mrs. Kim?

[Reporter]
Today, the prosecution spent a considerable amount of time at the briefing explaining the difference between Kim and Jeonju Son, as well as other aiding and abetting agents accused of aiding and abetting. The prosecution heard three additional cases of aiding and abetting in addition to Son, who was convicted in the Deutsche case this time. As you can see in the graphic, I heard the examples of three helpers, Kwon and Lee. Specifically, it is an example of how much specific conversation can be considered as an allegation of assistance only when it comes and goes. Let's do it with about 20,000 shares, which stands for bicycle trade, is it a bicycle? There were some things that mentioned the specific amount and size of the money from time to time, such as "I will catch more if I come in," 4,700 won, and the specific amount of money. On the other hand, the prosecution explained that Mrs. Kim has no investment expertise and no concrete evidence. Let's hear from the 4th deputy prosecutor of the Central District Prosecutors' Office, who led the investigation into the Deutsche Motors case.

[Anchor]
It ends with no final circumstances. Then, was there any previous attempt by the prosecution to secure evidence?

[Reporter]
In today's briefing, as well as in the prosecution's acquittal, the part that the prosecution consistently explains is that there is no objective evidence. In fact, related questions came out several times at the briefing. In 2020, when President Yoon Suk Yeol was the prosecutor general, the first investigation team once requested a search warrant for Kim's mobile phone and residence. At that time, the prosecution was Kobana Content, an exhibition agency run by Mrs. Kim. We were also investigating allegations that the agency received illegal cooperation from large companies. This case was eventually concluded to be innocent in March last year. However, after the search and seizure were rejected once during the investigation, the prosecution did not request it again. In the last four and a half years, there has never been a forced investigation into Mrs. Kim. In response, the investigation team said that the forced investigation should be very careful, and that since it was a case 10 years later, we had to consider whether it was effective in the forced investigation or whether there was anything left that could be confirmed by securing a residence or mobile phone. However, it is said that the accounts of Mrs. Kim and her mother, Choi Eun-soon, were issued two search and seizure warrants and tracked them in detail. Other states have raided 73 locations, including the residences and offices of manipulated accomplices, he explained.

[Anchor]
Has it been confirmed how much Mrs. Kim has made from Deutsche Motors stock?

[Reporter]
The prosecution explains that it is also difficult to calculate this in detail. Usually, profits related to crimes affect the weight of punishment during the trial process, so the prosecution often estimates roughly. In this case, it is unclear how far it can be viewed as criminal proceeds. In this regard, the first and second trial rulings in the Deutsche Motors stock price manipulation case also judged that it was difficult to calculate the profits of market price adjustment. The prosecution explained that normal trading and control transactions were mixed during the period, saying that just because they were caught in a psychological analysis of abnormal transactions on the Korea Exchange does not make all criminal profits.

[Anchor]
There was a lot of controversy during the investigation of Mrs. Kim. Please organize it.

[Reporter]
So far, two written investigations have been conducted against Kim during the prosecution's investigation. There was one private face-to-face survey. To explain the prepared graphic, the first written investigation was conducted immediately in December 2021, and in July last year, the prosecution sent a written questionnaire to Kim, but did not receive an answer. But in July of this year, the prosecution explained that it received a second response letter around the time of Kim's private face-to-face investigation. The investigation team explained that the second response received in July this year was about 70 pages, and that it took a total of six hours, including a break, to ask for additional parts to be checked during the face-to-face investigation.

[Anchor]
In fact, yesterday, without an investigation review committee composed of outside experts, only prosecutors held a meeting called the Red Team, and what is the reaction to this?

[Reporter]
There are positive evaluations now, but some point out why it was necessary. It seems that positive and negative evaluations are divided into half and half. As it is a matter of great public interest and controversy, it is interpreted as a willingness to look into the case objectively from a different perspective than the investigation team, but some point out that it is building a justification for the acquittal.
Unlike the luxury bag case, the prosecution's investigation review committee was not held and the prosecutor general's command was excluded, so it was not possible to hold a review committee under the authority of the president. If it is inevitable because it is a case of great public controversy, it is interpreted that the logic should be strengthened more thoroughly during the disposal process.

[Anchor]
It seems difficult to avoid controversy due to a series of charges related to First Lady Kim Gun-hee, but there is another parliamentary audit of the Central District Prosecutors' Office tomorrow, so what issues should we look at?

[Reporter]
Already, the opposition party is facing such a strong backlash that even some people say that the investigation command needs to be impeached. The prosecution's investigation team says it is the result of a strict review of the charges according to evidence and legal principles without any other consideration. Following the acquittal of Kim's past luxury bag cases, the controversy over the lookout is expected to be inevitable as the Deutsche stock price manipulation case has been cleared. The prosecution said at today's briefing that it was determined that anyone could look back at the investigation records at any time. As the Central District Prosecutors' Office's parliamentary audit is scheduled tomorrow, the aftermath, including the special prosecutor's offensive, is expected to be formidable.

[Anchor]
Let's stop here. I was reporter Shin Ji-won. Thank you for talking today.