Man at center of corruption scandal stabs himself numerous times

A police car is parked outside Ajou University Hospital in Suwon, Gyeonggi, where Hwacheon Daeyu owner Kim Man-bae is receiving treatment after stabbing himself on Wednesday. [YONHAP]

A key figure in the biggest current political corruption scandal attempted to take his own life earlier this week, police said Thursday.

Kim Man-bae, owner of a once obscure asset management company called Hwacheon Daeyu, stabbed himself in the chest and neck around 2 a.m. on Wednesday, again at 4 a.m. and again at 1 p.m., all while sitting in his black Mercedes Benz SUV that he had parked on a road outside Sungkyunkwan University’s Natural Sciences Campus in Jangan District, Suwon, Gyeonggi. It was not clear what transpired in the hours between the stabbings.

This occurred the same day prosecutors detained two of Kim’s acquaintances, Lee Han-seong and Choi Woo-hyang, on charges of concealing allegedly illegal profits reaped by Hwacheon Daeyu in the Daejang-dong development in Seongnam, Gyeonggi.

Hwacheon Daeyu raked in 57.7 billion won ($48.3 million) in profit from a 1 percent stake, on an investment of 49.95 million won in the Daejang-dong real estate project, which was approved by the current head of the Democratic Party (DP), Lee Jae-myung, when he was mayor of Seongnam.

An interior contractor only identified by the surname Kim, was also detained by prosecutors on Wednesday but released several hours later.

After stabbing himself, Kim Man-bae remained in the vehicle until he called his lawyer at 9 p.m. Wednesday. The lawyer found the Hwacheon Daeyu owner bleeding inside the vehicle and alerted emergency services, who transported him to Ajou University Hospital in Suwon.

According to police and emergency services officials who spoke to the JoongAng Ilbo on condition of anonymity, Kim’s self-inflicted wounds were not deep and did not pose a serious threat to his life. He is currently in an intensive treatment ward, but his condition is stable, officials said.

Police who inspected the vehicle said they found traces of blood, presumably Kim’s, but not the weapon or tool he used to hurt himself.

Kim is the latest of several people connected to the Daejang-dong development scandal who have taken their own life or attempted to do so.

Yoo Dong-gyu, who was acting president of the Seongnam Development Corporation at the time the Daejang-dong project launched in 2015, attempted to commit suicide while under detention in April by overdosing on sleeping pills.

Yoo was indicted last October for allegedly taking a bribe of 352 million won from lawyer Nam Wook, owner of Hwacheon Daeyu affiliate Cheonhwa Dongin No. 4.

Prosecutors allege that Yoo helped Hwacheon Daeyu earn outsized profits from the development project in return for the bribe, causing over 180 billion won in losses to the Seongnam Development Corporation.

While Yoo survived his suicide attempt, others who once worked at the Seongnam Development Corporation did not.

Yoo Han-gi, head of the Pocheon Urban Corporation, who was employed as a division manager at the Seongnam Development Corporation in 2015, was found dead near his home last December, shortly after leaving a resignation notice with his secretary.

Yoo was suspected of taking bribes totaling 200 million won from Nam and Jeong Young-hak, owner of Cheonhwa Dongin No. 5.

Kim Moon-gi, chief of the Seongnam Development Corporation project development division at the time the project launched, was found dead in his office later last December in an apparent suicide.

His death sparked political controversy because Lee Jae-myung, who was the DP’s presidential candidate at the time, denied knowing Kim despite a photo showing both men on a business trip to Australia in 2015.

While Lee has not been directly investigated in connection to the Daejang-dong development scandal, Nam alleged at his trial last month that Lee held a hidden stake through one of the investors in the project, leaving open the possibility that prosecutors could target the DP leader himself.

BY MICHAEL LEE [lee.junhyuk@joongang.co.kr]