A South Korean special prosecutor on Saturday summoned the jailed friend of impeached President Park Geun-hye who allegedly exploited her connections with Park to extort money and favours from the country’s largest companies and manipulate government affairs.
In handcuffs, white prison clothes and a surgical mask, Choi Soon-sil was escorted into a southern Seoul office where investigators have been widening their inquiry into the scandal. Millions of protesters have taken to the streets before the country’s opposition-controlled parliament on December 9 voted to impeach Park.
Lee Kyu Chul, an official from the investigation team led by special prosecutor Park Young-soo, said without elaborating that Choi would be “broadly” questioned on charges that were included in indictments and also on newer allegations. Choi can be summoned several more times in the coming weeks, he said.
Lee also said the team was planning to question Park, but did not say when that might happen. “We can investigate (the president) depending on how things develop and we are preparing for it in our own way,” Lee told reporters.
Choi’s summoning came before a massive crowd gathered near the presidential palace to call for Park’s permanent removal, extending the country’s largest-ever protest movement to Christmas Eve.