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The Catholic Priests’ Association for Justice blamed the independent counsel and his team yesterday for its seeming lack of willingness to carry out an investigation into allegations that Samsung was involved in creating slush funds used to lobby influential people.

The priest’s group was supposed to have had a meeting with the independent counsel appointed to carry out the investigation, Cho Joon-woong, yesterday. Kim In-kuk, a CPAJ member, said that the the independent counsel had requested the meeting, but that it did not take place after an assistant to the independent counsel announced that there would be an investigation at the meeting. “They don’t seem to be distinguishing the investigation from just a meeting,” the group said.

Jeon Jong-hun, a spokesman for the group, said, “There is no reason for the independent counsel to investigate us. They surely don’t have any will to carry out the investigation into the Samsung scandal given that they recently let Samsung Vice President Lee Hak-soo, a key suspect, return home without having been questioned.”

Criticism of the independent counsel intensified after he summoned the Samsung vice president for questioning last Thursday, but was reported to just have had a personal meeting with Lee, who is one of the key suspects in the case. At the time, Lee, pretending to be under investigation, took an elevator to the eighth floor of the building in which the independent counsel’s team is based, and then took the stairs down to the seventh floor where he met with Cho.

Father Jeon said, “The independent counsel asked for cooperation from the key suspect, while Lee requested that investigators refrain from raiding Samsung offices. This surely sheds light on what kind of relationship the independent counsel and Samsung have.”

The priest’s group seems to believe that the independent counsel is losing its will to continue the investigation, which also involves allegations that Samsung bribed members of the prosecution. Father Jeon said, “In the early stages of the investigation, Kim Yong-cheol met with Jegal Bok-seong, a member of the prosecution, and he promised to summon three suspects, including Lim Chai-jin, for questioning. But two weeks later when they met again, Jegal changed his mind, asking how he could call people in who were suspected of nothing.”

In another portion of the investigation, the independent counsel and his team have summoned two private money lenders for questioning. However, during the past 50 days, none of the officials from the prosecution, the National Tax Service and the Finance Ministry alleged to have been bribed by Samsung group have been called in for questioning.

The CPAJ urged the independent counsel and his team to unveil their interim investigation results; summon key suspects, including Samsung Chairman Lee Kun-hee and his family members; and seek punishment for anyone in the NTS and Financial Supervisory Service not cooperating with the ongoing investigation.



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