Tens of thousands of people are investigated for allegations of land speculation, but how many will be punished?

As the suspicion of speculation in the new cities of Gwangmyeong and Siheung by some employees of the Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) has increased, it is noteworthy whether an effective investigation will be conducted while the scope and target of the investigation have expanded.

According to the question-and-answer data distributed by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport the day before, the survey targets tens of thousands of people, including 4,000 officials from the headquarters of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport of local governments, about 10,000 employees of LH, and the existence and nonsense of employees of local government-related departments and local housing and urban corporations. It is expected to reach. The possibility of investigating retirees is also open.

In addition, the number of targets increased as President Moon Jae-in instructed all employees, including the Blue House chief, secretary, and administrators, and their families to quickly conduct a thorough investigation of the land transactions in the target area.

In the course of the investigation, the government is also considering a plan to widen the subject of the investigation if a situation is found in which close acquaintances of the subject may suspect speculation.

The joint investigation team of the State Affairs Coordination Office, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the Ministry of Public Administration and Security, the National Police Agency, Gyeonggi-do, and Incheon City participated in 6 new cities (Gwangmyeong Siheung, Namyangju Wangsuk, Hanam Gyosan, Incheon Gyeyang, Goyang Changneung, Bucheon Captain) and a land area of ​​1 million. A total of eight locations including Gwacheon, Gwacheon and Ansan Jangsang District, which are over ㎡, will be investigated.

In addition, the previous day, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport revealed that it plans to investigate the eight’surrounding areas’ for land transactions, which means that the range has increased from the originally expected area.

The investigation team plans to look at the details of land transactions of employees, spouses, and direct relatives who have worked in the organizations and departments under investigation from five years before the announcement of the location (resident public notice) to the present.

The thorough investigation is carried out by obtaining consent for collection and use of personal information, confirming whether the targets own land related to the third new city, and looking through the transaction details through the land transaction computer network.

To this end, the government is collecting consent to provide personal information to public officials and LH employees of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.

Some of the employees are complaining and protesting whether they have to provide personal information even though they have never worked on new town development or housing.

The question arises as to whether a robust survey will be conducted on tens of thousands of survey subjects and covering a range of millions of pyeong.

Even if the investigation confirms the fact of the sale, it is not clear at this time whether they can be criminally punished.

In order to penalize them, it is necessary to prove in detail that’real estate speculation was conducted using secrets obtained during business processing’, because it is difficult to distinguish between normal investment using legitimate information and illegal dumping using internal information.

In addition, the information on the designation of the 3rd new city has already been publicly known through the media.

For this reason, some argue that it is not a’business secret’ and that it has not yet obtained illegal profits because it has not yet realized profits through real estate disposal.

Kim In-man, director of the Real Estate Economic Research Institute, said, “President Moon Jae-in even used the expression’balbonsaekwon’ to emphasize the thorough investigation of the suspicion of land speculation in the 3rd new city, but the process for investigation and punishment in the future seems to be’in the midst of concubine’.” Forecast.

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