One day after the independent counsel who is investigating allegations that Samsung Group created a network of slush funds asked the Ministry of Justice to ban a Samsung Medical Center official from leaving the country, a witness who spoke to journalists from The Hankyoreh reported that he had seen officials from the center deleting computer files and destroying and moving documents.

This has led to charges that tips about the independent counsel’s investigation are being leaked to Samsung.

On February 20, a team of prosecutors assembled by the independent counsel to investigate the case asked the justice ministry to impose an overseas travel ban on a senior member of the hospital’s administrative staff, identified only by the surname Lee. Regarding the travel ban, an official on investigative team said, “We are figuring things out having received a tip about Samsung Medical Center.”

On February 21, from the early hours of the morning and into the night, Samsung Medical Center officials deleted files from their computer hard disks and moved dozens of boxes filled with documents to a vehicle near an emergency treatment room, according to journalists from The Hankyoreh.

At around 11:00 p.m. on February 20, a taxi driver, who wished to be identified only by his surname, Lee, was dropping a passenger off at the hospital, when he overheard a conversation between his passenger and another person. Lee said, “I happened to have been listening to the passenger’s mobile phone conversation. The passenger said, ‘Come to the hospital tonight wearing hospital attire. We have to get rid of some records because there might be a raid tomorrow.’”

The independent counsel is also looking into transfers of property made by Chairman Lee Kun-hee and his family, to determine if there was an illegal transfer of management rights from father-to-son, which is illegal in South Korea. On February 19, the independent counsel asked the Ministry of Construction and Transportation and the Ministry of Government Administration and Home Affairs to provide information related to the rights transfer. Prior to this, the independent counsel’s request for a warrant to conduct a raid on the National Tax Service, had been rejected by a Seoul district court. The independent counsel had asked for the warrant because the NTS had refused to give the information to the team.

The team is also working to analyze the results of its investigation into the Financial Supervisory Commission. This aspect of the investigation is focused on allegations that Lee Jae-yong, the 40-year-old senior vice president of Samsung Electronics and the only son of the Samsung chairman, had pocketed tens of billions of won in investment gains when he allegedly bought stocks in S1 Corp. based on internal information.

In addition, the team is reviewing data that it obtained from the Fair Trade Commission. The team is looking into suspicions that Samsung affiliates, including Samsung Life Insurance, Samsung Securities, and Samsung Fire and Marine Insurance, gave unfair support to the now-defunct Samsung Motors. The collected data also includes documents related to the issuance of convertible bonds at Samsung SDS. The team also questioned Kim Hong-ki, 61, the former CEO of Samsung SDS, as to whether the company had allegedly sold the bonds to Lee Jae-yong at a below-market price. It is suspected that the bonds purchase was used to transfer management rights from the Samsung chairman to his son.

Meanwhile, the team has confirmed that Samsung Group created dummy accounts using the names of its executives and their family members. It is suspected that the accounts are masking a large network of slush funds used to bribe public officials and members of the press. The team requested that the offices of some 30 cities and provinces, including Seoul, Daegu, and South Gyeongsang Province, submit documents listing the names of the executives and their family members. To understand how much money Chairman Lee, his family members and key Samsung executives actually earn, the independent counsel’s team asked the National Pension Service and the National Health Insurance Corporation to submit related information.

The team also banned Hong Ra-hee, 63, the wife of the Samsung chairman, from leaving the country following allegations that she used the group’s slush funds to buy expensive pieces of art. The Korea Customs Service was also asked to submit customs data on foreign artworks imported into the nation. The team also interviewed Hong Song-won, 55, the director of Seomi Gallery who is suspected of having bought works of art for the wife of the Samsung chairman, to discover how she may have purchased the works. The two Hongs are not related.

Please direct questions or comments to [englishhani@hani.co.kr]