Prosecutors said Monday the late head of a construction firm accused of bribing politicians may have been coaxed into covering up evidence.
A special task force investigating the case said about a dozen officials at Keangnam Enterprises Inc. tried to reach people unrelated to work just after the suicide of Sung Wan-jong, the Keangnam chairman.
These officials used borrowed phones and pay phones to contact the people, whose identities remain unknown.
The phone calls started April 9, the day of Sung’s death, and lasted until this past Wednesday.
Sung hanged himself right before a habeas corpus hearing. He was facing allegations of embezzlement.
He left behind a list of prominent figures, including Prime Minister Lee Wan-koo, with won figures next to most names.
Prosecutors suspect these figures represent bribery sums.
The bribed are the ones that normally try to contact the bribers, prosecutors said, pointing out that it is the other way around in this case, suggesting that something is amiss.
Earlier, they said Keangnam Enterprises tried to cover up evidence that might reveal its late chairman’s underhand dealings.
A significant portion of closed-circuit TV footage and computer files at Keangnam appear to have been deleted by the company. (Yonhap)
