Latest news with #Myung
Hans India
3 days ago
- Business
- Hans India
PM Modi greets Lee Jae-myung on presidency, signals intent for close cooperation
PM Modi congratulates Lee Jae-myung following his election as president of South Korea while expressing his desire to deepen the India-ROK Special Strategic Partnership. He expressed his congratulations on X to Mr Lee Jae-myung for Lee Jae-myung election as President of the Republic of Korea (ROK). We anticipate collaboration to enhance and solidify the India South Korea relations. Mr Lee Jae-Myung has been elected as the new President of the Republic of Korea. Keen to collaborate in extending and enhancing the India-ROK Special Strategic Partnership. On early Wednesday Lee Jae-myung from the liberal opposition became the new president following a period of political chaos that started when Yoon Suk Yeol imposed martial law. President Myung announced his government would implement strong deterrence against North Korean aggression based on the solid military partnership between South Korea and the United States during his first speech after taking office. Myung underlined his administration's openness to engage in talks with North Korea which would foster enduring peace throughout the Korean Peninsula. Lee encouraged South Korean citizens to advance "with hope and make a fresh start from this moment on" during his early Wednesday speech to his supporters according to Reuters. Despite our temporary diplomatic ties they remain fellow citizens of the Republic of Korea regardless of their lack of support for us he stated. He committed to continuing discussions and working together with North Korea to build peaceful coexistence and mutual prosperity even though South Korea remains technically at war with the North. Lee Jun-seok has divided conservative voters through his campaign which targets both younger people and a wider demographic than Kim while he builds his reputation as a legitimate future leader. The exit poll data showed that he captured 7.7% of the total vote share.
Korea Herald
29-04-2025
- Politics
- Korea Herald
Myung Tae-kyun investigated in election interference scandal
Myung Tae-kyun, accused of fabricating polls to influence the candidacies of conservative political figures, was summoned for questioning Tuesday morning, in a widening investigation into his alleged corrupt ties with the former presidential couple and current Seoul mayor. The pollster's summons to the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office suggests the investigation into his alleged ties with Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, ousted President Yoon Suk Yeol and former first lady Kim Keon Hee is approaching a critical stage, according to local reports. The prosecution suspects Oh enlisted the pollster's help to conduct 13 unpublished polls, with businessperson and supporter Kim Han-jung covering the costs. Additionally, Kang Hye-kyung, a former member of Myung's polling agency, reportedly received 33 million won ($23,000) from Kim in 2021. 'I came all the way from Changwon (in South Gyeongsang Province) to Seoul to bring Oh Se-hoon down,' Myung told reporters after arriving at the Seoul High Prosecutors' Office in Seocho-gu, southern Seoul, Tuesday. Asked about the number of times he met Seoul Mayor Oh, Myung claimed clear evidence and witnesses that would prove he met with Oh at least seven times. But the mayor said in November last year that he remembered meeting Myung only twice through the introduction of Kim Han-jung, around mid-to-late January 2021. He blasted Myung as a liar. Myung has also been embroiled in another political scandal for purportedly advising disgraced former President Yoon and his wife during the 2022 presidential campaign, alleging that he was later offered a public position following the Yoon's successful election. The controversy deepened when the Democratic Party of Korea released an audio recording suggesting Yoon had discussed a by-election nomination with Myung, following allegations that former first lady Kim had meddled in the ruling party's candidate nominations for the 2022 parliamentary by-elections. After being indicted and detained on charges of violating the Political Funds Act in December 2024, Myung confessed that he tried to manipulate public opinion at the request of top People Power Party politicians, including Oh. The political broker claimed he played a crucial role in facilitating Oh's Seoul mayoral by-election win in 2021. Though Oh supporter Kim Han-jung admitted to having sent money to pollster employee Kang during a prosecution investigation in March, Kim claimed it had nothing to do with covering public opinion poll expenses. It had merely been an attempt to leave a good impression of Oh to Myung, who claimed to have ties to Yoon, he said. Oh previously denied allegations of receiving any polling-related data from Myung and filed a complaint against him for deception and obstruction of his business as mayor last year. Meanwhile, Tuesday's investigation is also seen as the prosecutor's effort to expand the scope of the ongoing investigation into election nomination scandals involving former President Yoon and the first lady. Myung is suspected of receiving about 90 million won from a former lawmaker of the People Power Party, Kim Young-sun, on several occasions from 2022 to 2024. This was allegedly in exchange for Myung's help in getting her nominated on the party ticket ahead of the 2022 by-elections. Myung allegedly brokered the nomination for Kim by conducting multiple custom polls in favor of then-presidential candidate Yoon for free. The prosecution suspects the former first lady was involved in the nomination process as well. Asked about possible election interference by Yoon and Kim, the pollster said that the prosecution will make its own judgment, as it has already conducted extensive raids and questioned many witnesses. The Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office not only carried out search and seizure operations at the residence and office of Seoul Mayor Oh in mid-March, but also this month has investigated individuals connected to Yoon's alleged election interference, including former Gangseo-gu Mayor Kim Tae-woo, Kong Jae-kwang, who is mayor of Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, and more. Tuesday's investigation marked Myung's first public appearance since he was released from the Changwon Correctional Institution after the court granted bail in early April, nearly five months after his arrest on charges of violating the Political Funds Act.
Korea Herald
29-04-2025
- Politics
- Korea Herald
Myung Tae-kyun investigated for election interference scandal
Myung Tae-kyun, accused of fabricating polls to influence the election candidacies of conservative political figures, was summoned for questioning Tuesday morning, in a widening investigation into his alleged corrupt ties with the former presidential couple and the Seoul mayor. The pollster's summons to the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office suggests that the investigation into his alleged ties with Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, ousted President Yoon Suk Yeol, and former First Lady Kim Keon-hee is approaching a critical stage, according to local reports. According to the prosecution, Oh allegedly enlisted the pollster's help to conduct 13 unpublished polls, with businessperson and supporter Kim Han-jung covering the costs. Additionally, Kang Hye-kyung, a former member of Myung's polling agency, reportedly received 33 million won ($22,900) from Kim in 2021. 'I came all the way from Changwon to Seoul to bring Oh Se-hoon down,' Myung told reporters after arriving at the Seoul High Prosecutors' Office in Seocho-gu, southern Seoul, Tuesday. When asked about the number of times he met Seoul Mayor Oh, Myung claimed that there is clear evidence and witnesses proving that the two met at least seven times. But the mayor, who said in November last year that he remembered meeting Myung twice through the introduction of Kim Han-jung around mid-to-late January 2021, reportedly stated that it is regrettable to live in a society where criminals can speak so brazenly. The mayor urged the prosecution to conduct a thorough investigation and take firm action against criminals, making them stop deceiving society with lies and distortions. Myung has also been embroiled in another political scandal, claiming that he advised disgraced former President Yoon and his wife during the 2022 presidential campaign, and alleging that he was offered a public position following the election. The controversy deepened when the Democratic Party of Korea released an audio recording suggesting Yoon had discussed a by-election nomination with Myung, following allegations that former first lady Kim had meddled in the ruling party's candidate nominations for the 2022 parliamentary by-elections. After being indicted and detained on charges of violating the Political Funds Act in December 2024, Myung confessed that he tried to manipulate public opinion at the request of top ruling party politicians, including Oh. The political broker claimed that he played a crucial role in facilitating Oh's Seoul mayoral by-election win in 2021. Though Oh's supporter Kim admitted that he had sent money to Kang during the prosecution investigation in March, he claimed that it had nothing to do with covering public opinion poll expenses. It had merely been an attempt to leave a good impression of Oh to Myung, who claimed to have ties with former President Yoon, he said. Oh previously denied allegations of receiving any polling-related data from Myung and filed a complaint against him for deception and obstruction of business charges last year. Meanwhile, Tuesday's investigation is also seen as the prosecutor's effort to expand the ongoing investigation into the election nomination scandals involving the former presidential couple. Myung is suspected of receiving about 90 million won from a former lawmaker of the People Power Party, Kim Young-sun, on several occasions between 2022 to 2024. This was allegedly in exchange for Myung's help in getting her nominated on the party ticket ahead of the 2022 by-elections. He allegedly earned the nomination for Kim by conducting multiple customized polls in favor of then-presidential candidate Yoon for free. The prosecution suspects the former first lady was involved in the nomination process as well. When asked about the possible election interference by Yoon and Kim, the pollster said that the prosecution will make its own judgment, as it has already conducted extensive raids and questioned many witnesses. The Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office did not only carry out search and seizure operations at the residence and office of Seoul Mayor Oh in mid-March, but also investigated the individuals who are connected to former President's Yoon's alleged election interference, including former Gangseo-gu Mayor Kim Tae-woo, Pyeongtaek Mayor Kong Jae-kwang and more, in April. Tuesday's investigation marked Myung's first public appearance after he was released from Changwon Correctional Institution after the court granted bail to him in early April, nearly five months after his arrest on charges of violating the Political Funds Act.
Korea Herald
20-03-2025
- Politics
- Korea Herald
Seoul Mayor's residence, office raided over power-broker scandal
Prosecutors carried out a search and seizure operation at the residence and office of Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon on Thursday, as part of an investigation into alleged corrupt ties between Oh and Myung Tae-kyun, a pollster and self-proclaimed power broker. Thursday's raid by the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office is seen as an effort to expand the ongoing investigation into multiple election nomination scandals involving Myung and key conservative politicians. The probe, which began in December last year, includes figures such as President Yoon Suk Yeol and First Lady Kim Keon-hee. Oh allegedly enlisted the political broker's help to conduct 13 unpublished polls, with businessman and supporter Kim Han-jung covering the costs. Kang Hye-kyung, a former member of Myung's polling organization, reportedly received a total of 33 million won ($22,600) from Kim in 2021, according to the prosecution. Myung was indicted and detained on charges of violating the Political Funds Act in December 2024, and has since confessed that he tried to manipulate public opinion on requests of ruling party politicians, including Oh Se-hoon and Daegu Mayor Hong Joon-pyo. Myung continued to claim that he played a crucial role in Oh's Seoul mayoral by-election in 2021. But Oh denied the allegations of receiving any data from the political broker and filed a complaint against him for deception and obstruction of business charges last year. The mayor has continued to counter Myung's claim, arguing that the power broker is lying and that he has no ties with him. During the prosecutors' search and seizure operation on Thursday morning, Oh reportedly assured city government officials that the measures were merely the final steps in concluding the Myung-related investigation and were nothing out of the ordinary. In a local broadcast on Monday, the Seoul mayor said he expects prosecutors to summon him after repeatedly questioning his close associates. Oh stated that he anticipates being called in and believes his appearance will mark the conclusion of the investigation, reaffirming his innocence. Meanwhile, Oh's supporter, Kim Han-jung, admitted that he had sent money to Kang, but claimed it had nothing to do with Oh's campaign. He argued that the money was not sent to cover public opinion poll expenses, but was merely an attempt to leave a good impression of Oh to Myung, who claims to have ties with President Yoon. Close associates of Oh's that have been summoned and investigated by the prosecution so far include Kim, former deputy mayor of Seoul Kang Cheol-won, and other key Seoul Metropolitan Government officials. The prosecution previously searched Kim's house and office on Feb. 26. It also summoned him to question whether he had paid for the public opinion polls on behalf of Oh. The city government said it would verify the warrant in the presence of Oh's lawyers and cooperate with the prosecutors accordingly.
Korea Herald
10-03-2025
- Korea Herald
Police to decide on disclosing teacher's identity in Daejeon elementary school murder case
Authorities were set to determine as early as Monday whether to disclose the identity of a 48-year-old teacher surnamed Myung, who is accused of murdering an 8-year-old student at an elementary school in Daejeon. The Daejeon Metropolitan Police Agency said it is expected to hold a deliberation committee either on Monday or Tuesday to review whether to release the suspect's personal details, including her name, age and photograph. Under South Korean law, law enforcement officials may disclose the personal details of a suspect, including their face, age and name, if the crime is deemed particularly heinous and the public interest is served by doing so. If the committee rules in favor of disclosure, Myung's identity will be made public after a mandatory five-day waiting period. The committee is to consist of up to 10 members, at least four of whom are external experts, such as medical professionals or professors associated with policing, as well as lawyers. Myung was arrested on Saturday, 26 days after the crime took place. A local court issued an arrest warrant citing the suspect's flight risk, though Myung refused to appear in court for the warrant hearing. Investigators believe that Myung purchased a knife from a nearby store on the day of the crime, then lured the victim, an 8-year-old girl named Kim Ha-neul, into an audiovisual classroom by offering her a book before stabbing her to death. Police report that Myung said she committed the act after feeling upset about being barred from teaching by the school's vice principal following incidents of property damage and disputes with fellow teachers. After the crime, Myung attempted self-harm and was hospitalized for nearly a month before being transferred to police custody on Friday, where she underwent seven hours of interrogation before being placed in a detention facility. Authorities are expected to wrap up their investigation and formally refer the case to prosecutors later this week. "Myung calmly answered questions during the face-to-face investigation and admitted to most of the crimes," said a police official, adding that they plan to conclude the investigation by referring to a criminal behavior analysis conducted by profilers.
