
Special counsel raids ex-investment firm chief in probe into ex-first lady
Investigators from special counsel Min Joong-ki's team seized a mobile phone during a raid on the home and car of Lee Jong-ho, former head of Blackpearl Invest, in Seongnam, just south of Seoul, according to the officials.
Lee is suspected of violating the Attorney-at-Law Act.
The special counsel has also notified him to appear for questioning Monday.
He has allegedly received 81 million won (US$58,000) from a confidant of first lady Kim in return for helping secure a suspended sentence in a stock manipulation case involving Kim.
Lee has reportedly denied the allegations.
He is known to be a key figure in the manipulation of stock prices of Deutsch Motors, a BMW dealer in South Korea, between 2009 and 2012 through illegal trading schemes. He was sentenced to a suspended prison term by the Supreme Court in April.
Last week, Lee's residence was also raided by a separate special counsel team investigating alleged political interference in the 2023 death of a young Marine. (Yonhap)

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Korea Herald
27 minutes ago
- Korea Herald
House committee passes bill to establish interparliamentary dialogue among S. Korea, US, Japan
A US House committee passed a bill Tuesday to establish an interparliamentary trilateral dialogue among South Korea, the United States and Japan as part of efforts to deepen cooperation in tackling shared challenges in the Indo-Pacific. The House Foreign Affairs Committee endorsed the US-Japan-ROK Trilateral Cooperation Act aimed at creating permanent channels of communication and coordination among the three countries' legislative bodies, according to the office of Rep. Ami Bera, ranking member of the subcommittee on East Asia and the Pacific. "As we face growing threats in the Indo-Pacific, now is the time to invest in our closest alliances rooted in democratic principles," Bera said in a statement. "This bill creates a permanent forum for lawmakers from the United States, Japan, and South Korea to meet regularly, exchange ideas, and coordinate on challenges ranging from maritime security and economic growth to safeguarding democratic institutions," he added. The lawmaker said the legislative effort builds on the momentum from the first standalone trilateral summit that the leaders of the three countries held at Camp David in Maryland in August 2023 to strengthen three-way cooperation. Bera introduced the bill, while Reps. Joe Wilson, Mike Kelly, Joaquin Castro, Adrian Smith and the late Gerry Connolly co-led the legislation.


Korea Herald
36 minutes ago
- Korea Herald
Trump says China trip is 'not too distant' as trade tensions ease
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Tuesday said a trip to China might be 'not too distant,' raising prospects that the leaders of the world's two largest economies may meet soon to help reset relations after moving to climb down from a trade war. Trump made the remarks while hosting Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. at the White House, where he praised the 'fantastic military relationship' with Manila as the US looks to counter China's influence in the Indo-Pacific region. Yet, Trump still said the US is 'getting along with China very well. We have a very good relationship.' He added that Beijing has resumed shipping to the US 'record numbers' of much-needed rare earth magnets, which are used in iPhones and other high-tech products like electric vehicles. Widely speculated about since Trump returned to the White House, a summit between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping would be expected to stabilize — even for a short while — a difficult relationship defined by mistrust and competition. Beijing believes a leader-level summit is necessary to steady US-China relations and that Trump must be wooed because he has the final say on America's policy toward China, despite more hawkish voices in his Cabinet, observers say. The question, however, is when. Danny Russel, a distinguished fellow at the Asia Society Policy Institute, said Trump has consistently shown his hunger for a visit to China and that Beijing has used that to bolster leverage. 'As soon as the leadership in Beijing is satisfied that Trump will be on his best behavior and will accept terms for a deal that they think are favorable, they will give a green light to the visit,' Russel said. Sun Yun, director of the China program at the Washington-based think tank Stimson Center, said a visit 'is in the making' with two sides likely to strike a trade deal. What Trump said might mean the visit would not be in September but 'potentially November, but still depends on whether they play ball on trade and other things we want,' Sun said. Trump's campaign to impose tariffs on other countries kicked off a high-stake trade war with Beijing. China raised tariffs on US goods to 125 percent in response to Trump's hiking the tax on Chinese goods to 145 percent. Both sides also imposed on each other harsh trade restrictions on critical products: China on rare earths, and the US on computing chips and jet engine technology. Trade tensions, however, eased following two rounds of high-level talks in Geneva and London, when the two sides agreed to lower tariffs — pending a more permanent deal by mid-August — and pull back on trade restrictions. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Tuesday on Fox Business' 'Mornings with Maria' that he will be meeting with his Chinese counterparts in Stockholm next week to work on 'what is likely an extension' of the Aug. 12 deadline. 'I think trade is in a very good place with China,' Bessent told host Maria Bartiromo. 'Hopefully, we can see the Chinese pull back on some of this glut of manufacturing that they're doing and concentrate on building a consumer economy.' He said he also expects to bring up China's purchases of Russian and Iranian oil and Beijing's role in aiding Moscow in its war against Ukraine. Beijing has not announced any travel plans for Vice Premier He Lifeng, who led trade negotiations in both Geneva and London on behalf of the Chinese government, but it is not unusual for China to make such announcements closer to a travel date. In a possible friendly gesture, Beijing on Tuesday said it suspended an antitrust investigation into chemical maker DuPont's operations in China. China's State Administration for Market Regulation made the announcement in a one-line statement but gave no explanation for the decision. DuPont said in a statement that it is 'pleased' with China's action. Chinese regulators launched the investigation in April against DuPont China Group, a subsidiary of the chemical giant, as part of Beijing's broad, retaliatory response to Trump's sky-high tariffs. Beijing also has agreed to approve export permits for rare earth elements and rare earth magnets that US manufacturers need to build cars, robots, wind turbines and other high-tech products. The US has eased restrictions on some advanced chips and other technologies.


Korea Herald
an hour ago
- Korea Herald
Industry minister heads to Washington for trade talks with US counterparts
South Korea's new industry minister departed for Washington, D.C., on Wednesday to hold talks with high-level officials of the Donald Trump administration, about a week before the Aug. 1 deadline for a trade deal is set to expire. During his three-day trip to the United States, Kim Jung-kwan, minister of trade, industry and energy, will meet with US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, who also serves as the chairman of the National Energy Council, according to his office. "Given the significant impact that tariff negotiations could have on our economy, the government will thoroughly respond by carefully considering the sensitivities across different sectors," Kim was quoted as saying. "Although it is currently difficult to predict the direction of US tariff measures, the government will engage in negotiations under close coordination between relevant ministries, with an aim to maximize national interest," he added. "We will make every effort to ensure that this negotiation becomes an opportunity to upgrade the Korea-US cooperation in the industrial and energy sectors, producing a positive-sum outcome for both countries." The ministry of trade, industry and energy said Kim is expected to highlight the potential for increased cooperation between Seoul and Washington in many strategic industries, including energy, shipbuilding, semiconductors and batteries, while meeting his US counterparts this week. Kim's US trip, the first of its kind since he took office Monday, comes amid South Korea's efforts to speed up tariff negotiations with the Trump administration before Washington begins imposing 25 percent reciprocal tariffs on Korean products on Aug. 1. It also comes ahead of planned "2+2" trade talks involving South Korea's Finance Minister Koo Yun-cheol, Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo and their US counterparts -- Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer -- set to be held Friday (local time) in Washington. Foreign Minister Cho Hyun is also arranging a visit to the US to meet with his counterpart, Marco Rubio, according to government officials. National Security Adviser Wi Sung-lac reportedly headed to Washington on Sunday to engage with his US counterparts in tariff negotiations. South Korea has been negotiating with the US on a wide range of trade issues for months, seeking a full exemption or reduction of the planned 25 percent reciprocal tariffs for the country and sectoral tariffs imposed on all steel and automobile imports by the Trump administration. Items on the negotiating table are said to include Seoul's import ban on American beef from cattle aged 30 months or older, proposed online platform regulations and restrictions on the export of high-precision map data. (Yonhap)