Bribery charges for golf club owner, ex-tax man

A former National Tax Service official was indicted and detained under suspicion of receiving 55 million won ($51,570) from a resident who was the owner of a golf club in Seoul, in return for the tax agency going easy in its tax audit of his club, the Seoul Central Prosecutors’ Office said yesterday. The golf club owner was also indicted on charges of bribery.

The former manager-level official, identified by his surname Lim, 54, was fired in April when the tax agency found he allegedly received 6.5 million won in total from seven local accountants and businessmen in 2008 when he was working for a local branch of the tax agency. He allegedly spent the money on his personal expenses.

The Seoul Central Prosecutors’ Office also on Sunday indicted a former tax agent working for the Seoul Regional Tax Office, who was inspecting the well-known private institute called Kimyoung University Transfer Academy.

Prosecutors said the official surnamed Lee allegedly received bribes from the academy’s president, Kim Young, who asked him to reduce the taxes imposed on his firm.

The state-run tax agency has been reeling after other officials were arrested on charges of receiving bribes from Busan Savings Bank Group in exchange for “being generous” in tax audits on the group’s debt-ridden banks.

Prosecutors on Friday indicted three officials of the Busan Regional Tax Office on suspicion of receiving 200 million won from Kim Hu-jin, executive director of the Busan II Savings Bank.

The officials, who were in charge of conducting the regular tax audit of the bank in December 2009, received the money from Kim, who asked them to reduce the taxes imposed on the bank.

The officials reduced the taxes on the bank from the original 600 million won to 420 million won.

Prosecutors added one more charge, bribery, against Kim, who had already been arrested on charges of illegal loans and fake accounts.

On June 30, former Busan Regional Tax Agency Chief Kim Nam-man, 65, was indicted and detained.

Prosecutors suspect that the Busan Savings Bank Group gave the former chief 101 million won to deliver to officials conducting a tax audit of the group in 2006, after Kim retired in 2004.

Amid rising public criticism over the bottomless arrests of tax agency officials, National Tax Service Commissioner Lee Hyun-dong said yesterday that “the National Tax Service should change from the inside.”

By Kim Hee-jin [heejin@joongang.co.kr]

한글 관련 기사 [연합]
수천만원 수수 지방국세청 前간부 기소

서울중앙지검 특수2부(최윤수 부장검사)는 세무조사 무마 청탁 대가로 수천만원의 뒷돈을 받은 혐의(특정범죄가중처벌법상 뇌물) 등으로 지방국세청 전 간부 임모(54)씨를 구속기소했다고 5일 밝혔다.

검찰에 따르면 임씨는 2009년 8∼10월 관내에서 영농조합과 골프장 등을 운영하던 이모(55)씨로부터 세무조사 무마 청탁과 함께 5천500만원을 받아 챙긴 혐의를 받고 있다.

이에 앞서 지방 세무서 운영지원과장으로 근무하던 2008년에는 지역 세무사, 회계사, 사업가 등 7명으로부터 세무서 주최의 꽃전시회 찬조금 명목으로 650만원을 받아내 개인 용도로 쓴 혐의도 있다.

임씨는 지난 4월 내부 감찰 과정에서 이 같은 사실이 적발돼 직위 해제됐다.

검찰은 임씨에게 세무조사 무마 명목으로 돈을 건넨 이씨도 뇌물공여 혐의로 불구속 기소했다.