Even though we knew that the performance did not meet the standard, we received delivery in full… Allegations of breach of trust, etc.
Expansion of investigation into allegations of negligent management of the institution... Targeting 'Sunpia' for collusion with companies
(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Jeong Yun-ju = Special prosecutor Lee Tae-han of the National Election Commission, which is investigating the shortage of ballot papers for the June 3 local elections, discovered additional suspicions of corruption in the supply of equipment worth 14 billion won by National Election Commission employees and began a search and seizure again.
The special prosecution team executed search and seizure warrants on the National Election Commission and two residences of current and former National Election Commission employees from 9:10 a.m. on the 30th and secured data related to the delivery. 17 people, including 2 dispatched prosecutors and 5 forensic investigators, were involved in the search and seizure.
The special investigation team discovered a situation in which the National Election Commission employees, in the process of receiving expensive mechanical equipment used in elections, passed the equipment despite confirming that more than half of them did not meet the passing standards in the equipment performance evaluation (BMT), so that all equipment worth about 14 billion won was delivered.
It was found that the search and seizure warrant included charges of breach of trust.
The special prosecutor's team is expanding its investigation into allegations of negligent operation of the National Election Commission.
The Special Prosecution Act specifies as subjects of investigation cases related to the overall lax operation of the institution and job-related corruption, such as foreign business trips by current and former members, employees, and officials of the National Election Commission, preferential promotions for children, unfair hiring/recruitment preferential treatment, preferential contracting, and collusion with companies.
Based on this, the special prosecution team is concentrating its investigative power to uncover suspicions of corruption in bidding and delivery by looking into the National Election Commission's overall service contracts for election supplies, including early voting boxes and polling place notices, during last year's presidential election and this year's local elections.
For example, Mr. A, a former head of the political party division of the National Election Commission, is being investigated on charges of winning the bid to select a supplier of early voting boxes for the June 3 local elections by appointing a sidekick company (bidding interference).
There is also a suspicion that the National Election Commission signed a total of 103 contracts worth 17.5 billion won with three companies related to Mr. A and his spouse and son, forming the so-called 'Sunfia (NEC mafia) cartel.'
The special investigation team also detected tax evasion at more than five companies, including the ballot box manufacturing company run by Mr. A, and requested a tax investigation from the National Tax Service.
Also subject to investigation are suspicions that the National Election Commission gave preferential treatment to a specific company, Company B, in the project to produce voting booth kits worth a total of 5 billion won during last year's presidential election and this year's local elections.
Circumstances in which provincial election commissions such as Busan, Gyeongnam, and Gyeongbuk have signed exclusive preferential warehouse contracts with specific companies starting in 2022 are also under investigation.
In addition, the special prosecution team is tightening the reins of the investigation by confirming that the National Election Commission falsely entered the number of voters by time zone in the June 3 local elections. To date, 36 city, county and district election commissions have been confirmed to have entered false numbers of voters.
Previously, on the 28th, the special prosecutor's team publicly verified about 2.47 million ballot papers from the Songpa area that were stored at the handball stadium at Jamsil Olympic Park in Seoul and took them all out from the site.
Among these, the normal ballots were transferred to the National Election Commission, and the ballots and equipment on which objections were filed will be subject to additional detailed evaluation and then whether or not to switch to an investigation will be considered.
