Two South Korean corporate officials die amid scandal
Two senior officials of state-owned conglomerate Korea Land & Housing Corp appear to have committed suicide amid an ongoing property speculation scandal.
An official was found bleeding in a garden in Seongnam, south of Seoul, on March 12, leaving a note saying he regretted doing “undesirable things” while heading the Korea Land & Housing Corp (LH) office in North Jeolla Province. Police are trying to determine the cause of death and are leaning towards the possibility of suicide.
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| LH headquarters in Jinju. Photo: Yonhap. |
This morning, another senior LH official was found hanged in Paju, north of Seoul. Police did not find a suicide note, but the official is believed to have sent a text message to his family, implying that he was going to end his life.
Yonhap said the second official was not a subject of an investigation into alleged insider trading by dozens of LH employees. However, local media have questioned his suspicious land transactions.
According to an initial investigation into the scandal, at least 20 LH employees are suspected of trying to use confidential information to purchase land before new development projects were scheduled to start in the area, South Korean Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said on March 11.
Criticizing the slow pace of the current investigation, the opposition People's Party has called for a prosecutor-led investigation to ensure a swift and thorough process. The scandal has caused outrage in South Korea as property prices in and around Seoul have skyrocketed, making it difficult to find affordable housing.
South Korea's Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Byeon Chang-heum has resigned over a scandal. Byeon headed the LH from April 2019 to December 2020.
