S. Korean President’s right-hand man held
Seoul, Nov. 6: South Korean prosecutors arrested two former top Presidential aides on Sunday in a snowballing influence-peddling scandal which has seen tens of thousands of people take to the streets to demand President Park Geun-Hye resign.
Ms Park’s approval ratings have hit a historic low of five percent — a record for a sitting president — over the scandal involving her close friend Choi Soon-Sil.
Ms Choi has been arrested for fraud and also stands accused of meddling in state affairs — including government appointments and policy decisions — despite holding no official position.
Ahn Jong-beom, a former senior advisor to Park, was formally arrested early Sunday on charges of abuse of power and attempted coercion, the Yonhap news agency reported.
He is suspected of helping Choi collect millions of dollars in donations from conglomerates like Samsung to two dubious non-profit foundations, which Choi set up and allegedly used for personal gain.
Mr Ahn, who has been in custody since Wednesday after stepping down ate last month said he would “take responsibility” for failing to properly advise the President, Yonhap reported.
Prosecutors also arrested Jeong Ho-Seong, another former presidential aide, over allegations that he leaked classified information.
The 47-year-old Jeong, who was known as Ms Park’s right hand man and has assisted her since 1998, is suspected of passing presidential speeches and official documents to Ms Choi.