Cambodia’s help sought in Busan case

Cambodia’s help sought in Busan case

July 04, 2011
By Yim Seung-hye [sharon@joongang.co.kr]
Korea Joogang Daily (South Korea)

Following Seoul’s request last week for help from Canada in extraditing the super-lobbyist Park Tae-gyu, 72, over the Busan Savings Bank Group scandal, Prosecutor General Kim Joon-gyu again requested cooperation.

This time it was from Cambodia in investigating Busan Savings Bank Group’s development project in Cambodia and the redemption of concealed properties of the group in Cambodia.

According to the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office yesterday, Kim held talks on Saturday at the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office building in southern Seoul with the prosecutor general of Cambodia, who was visiting Seoul to attend the World Summit of Prosecutors General. The Cambodian official agreed during the meeting to help Seoul in its investigation.

At the meeting, Kim asked for Cambodia’s help to determine “whether the Busan Savings Bank’s loan that was invested on the ‘Camco City’ and ‘Campo Airport’ projects in Cambodia was properly used.”

The prosecutor also requested cooperation on tracing the whereabouts of the money as well as its redemption.

According to prosecutors, Busan Savings Bank Group illegally invested 419.5 billion won ($394 million), including 353.4 billion won on the Camco City Development Project since August 2005 and 66.1 billion won on the development project of a new international airport in Siem Reap since August 2007, by giving out illegal loans to its special purpose companies based in Cambodia.

Most of the group’s development projects in Cambodia were halted and the whereabouts of the funds that reached about 600 billion won are unknown, according to the prosecutors.