|
November 04, 2009
|
|
It’s upsetting for any family if a relative is arrested. But it’s even more distressing when the police claim to have detained and interrogated a member of your clan who is in fact already dead. So it’s no surprise that the son of a senior executive of a nature protection agency surnamed Gu, 60, said he is planning to sue the Daejeon police for defamation after officers claimed to have indicted Gu, Sr. on charges of embezzlement more than a month after he passed away. The Daejeon Metropolitan Police Agency has denied any intention to defame the deceased man and said it was simply trying to reveal the details of a probe into misuse of government subsidies. But the organization Gu worked for, the Korea Wild Animal and Plant Service, a government-funded civic group aimed at protecting wild plants and animals, is supporting the family’s complaints by posting complaints about the probe into Gu on the Web site of the Daejeon police agency. The family’s anger stems from when the Daejeon Metropolitan Police Agency reported on Oct. 27 that investigators had indicted Gu and another executive from the civic group surnamed Choi, 55, without detention on charges of siphoning off government subsidies for personal use. A press release said that police pressed charges against the two men and arrested them at the Daejeon police agency at 9 a.m. in Oct. 24. However, Gu was confirmed dead after an illness on Sept. 14 at Chungnam Asan Hospital in South Chungcheong. It was also confirmed that investigators never actually summoned Gu. Following a series of protests, the police responded online to Gu’s family saying that they apologize for creating misunderstandings by mentioning the dead man’s name while writing the press release. It is not clear whether or not the police were aware that Gu was dead at the time the press release was issued. Police also said in its online statement that they had confirmed the charges against Gu. “An investigation revealed that Gu embezzled government money,” an officer, who asked not to be named, said in a phone interview with the JoongAng Ilbo, a parent company of JoongAng Daily. “Police judged that Gu was the principal offender and pressed charges against him. We don’t know why Kowaps keep on complaining even after we have settled the matter with the grieving family.” In response, Gu’s 29-year-old son said that not one single call came from the police until the ceremonial 49th-day of Gu’s passing, which fell on Sunday. The son added that he planned to accuse the police of defaming his father. According to investigators, Gu and Choi hid subsidies from the Ministry of Environment worth over 52 million won ($43,888) between February 2007 and March this year, and used the money for themselves. Gu and Choi allegedly embezzled 36.53 million and 15.6 million won, respectively, police said. Both of them were in charge of tracking down poachers. But Kim Cheol-hun, vice president of Kowaps, said the investigators had conducted an excessive probe without clear understanding of the organization. “It is our custom to track down poaching during the winter by relying on credit or private expenses. Then we make up for that cost with the subsidy that comes in late February or early March the following year,” he said. By Lee Jin-joo, Lee Min-yong [smartpower@joongang.co.kr] |
|
