You Are Defended - Chapter 633



Only Noblemtl

Episode 633

This investigation was to be conducted by me and Lee Ye-jin, deputy chief of the 3rd Special Investigation Division of the Central District Prosecutors’ Office. In Lee Ye-jin’s case, although she is called deputy chief, she is actually at the level of a senior prosecutor.

Originally, she had to listen to the manager’s voice since last year, but due to a lack of positions, her promotion was delayed and she had to stay as a deputy manager for her entire term.

She too has only moved horizontally from Special Division 1 to Division 3.

So, what this means is that a piece of human trash like Ko Sang-jun should be honored to have a senior prosecutor write a report for him.

“Please be advised that the current investigation is being video recorded.”

At Lee Ye-jin’s words, Ko Sang-jun glanced at the camera placed next to him.

She exchanged glances with me for a moment, then began the process of verifying my personal information.

“Please state your name.”

“This is Ko Sang-jun.”

“Your resident registration number.”

Ko Sang-jun answered calmly.

There was a moment of confusion when it came to stating the address of residence.

This may be because there is no need to remember your own address.

“Mr. Ko Sang-jun has the right not to make any statements or to answer individual questions. Even if he refuses to make a statement, he will not suffer any disadvantages, and if he waives his right to refuse to make a statement and makes a statement, it may be used as evidence of guilt in court. He may also receive assistance from a lawyer, including having a lawyer attend.”

The procedure must be followed strictly, as failure to notify the investigator beforehand may result in the statement you worked so hard to prepare being thrown away.

“Have you heard the explanation about the right to remain silent and the right to counsel?”

Lee Ye-jin handed over a piece of paper along with a pen in front of Ko Sang-jun.

“This is a confirmation of having heard the explanation. Please write in your own handwriting, in order, yes or no, however you like. Please write your name at the bottom and sign.”

Ko Sang-jun filled out the answers with a ballpoint pen and signed without asking the lawyer any questions.

Since he was investigated thoroughly during the accounting fraud investigation in the early 2000s, he seems to know very well that signing the document does not cause any problems.

That’s why it’s called career position, career position.

After that, additional procedures such as identity verification were carried out, and the investigation began in earnest.

“Mr. Ko Sang-jun is currently accused of kidnapping and enticing children and adolescents belonging to the Angel’s House for the purpose of molesting them, statutory rape of a minor, sexual intercourse with a detainee, arranging prostitution, accepting bribes, and organizing a criminal organization.”

I was shocked as I listed the charges on the document.

Even if we omit this, there were still this many.

“Do you admit the charges?”

When I asked, Ko Sang-jun stared at me intently.

─Inspector… … . I think you should do it moderately. It seems like you are overdoing it.

─If what you’re doing now isn’t too much, then what is? Haha. It’s not wrong to dream, but… …. Trying to make your dreams come true without properly preparing is arrogant.

As I locked eyes with Ko Sang-jun, the special prosecutor’s investigation room in my previous life in 2018 suddenly appeared before my eyes.

Even the voice I heard back then still rang in my ears.

Go Sang-jun looked relaxed as he entered the special prosecutor’s office.

The lawyer he brought along showed off his friendship by shaking hands with the special prosecutor, assistant special prosecutors, and some dispatched prosecutors.

In an instant, my palms were covered in cold sweat.

For a moment, I was gripped by a strange sensation, as if my body’s shell was still intact but the contents inside my body were spinning around.

The signs are not good.

This is the first time I have encountered Ko Sang-jun and recognized each other’s existence since I started this life.

Considering that I had previously had seizures just from hearing voices, I took a larger dose of medication than usual, but my left hand, which was placed under the desk, was trembling slightly.

awe?

That’s not the case.

anger?

My anger towards Ko Sang-jun has always been by my side, so it is not strange.

Unlike before, when I would show seizure symptoms even at the slightest stimulation, after I changed my mind in various ways, I was able to control it sufficiently with medication.

Even when I met Go Yoon-soo, I felt like Go Sang-jun was in front of me when I looked at him, but it didn’t go smoothly.

But, after all, Ko Sang-jun was Ko Sang-jun.

“Do you admit it?”

I asked once more before the silence became too long and I could arouse any suspicion.

It would be impossible to let the absurd news leak out that the special prosecutor had been showing symptoms of a seizure since the first investigation.

The Special Prosecutor Act also states that a special prosecutor can be dismissed if he or she is deemed to have a mental or physical illness that makes it significantly difficult for him or her to perform his or her duties.

A seizure is clearly grounds for dismissal for anyone to see.

How did you get here, you can’t be fired for something like that.

I stabbed my palm hard with the nib of the fountain pen I was holding.

“… … .”

I felt a sharp pain as the nib dug into my skin.

Memories of the past that had been eating away at my mind began to gradually fade.

“I don’t admit it.”

And then, Ko Sang-jun answered slowly.

“I see. What is your relationship with Ms. Kim Mi-ja, the victim of sexual exploitation at a brothel where Mr. Ko Sang-jun was involved in prostitution and other acts, and the brothel’s manager?”

“I don’t know him.”

“You don’t know me?”

“I have heard stories about him since he is such a hot topic.”

Ko Sang-jun answered calmly.

“What kind of story did you hear?”

“As you said, I heard in a media interview that you made false claims that I did such things.”

If this incident had simply been a case of slush funds or illegal lobbying, or if it had been about instigating my murder like in the case of Go Yoon-soo, Go Sang-jun would have consistently maintained that he “doesn’t remember.”

But responding to Kim Mi-ja’s claims at that level is virtually no different from admitting it.

It is a crime of such low status and large scale that only third-rate gangsters can commit it, and it must be denied unconditionally.

Besides, isn’t this a situation where everyone in the country is expecting him to deny the charges?

Denying the charges won’t invite any greater criticism.

I continued speaking while listening to Lee Ye-jin’s typing sound.

“If this is a false claim, does that mean that Mr. Ko Sang-jun does not know Ms. Kim Mi-ja at all and is completely unaware of the existence of that fairy?”

“Yes.”

“About a month ago, there was an article about victims from Angel House who were sent to Japan under the pretext of studying abroad and were rescued by the Japanese police. Did you know?”

“Yes, I know.”

“According to information shared by the Japanese police, all of the victims have traces of assault on their bodies, deep wounds on their genitals and other areas that have since healed, and they show signs of aversion to being touched by anyone or being extremely sensitive to contact with middle-aged or older men. In your opinion, Mr. Ko Sang-jun, why do you think the victims are showing these symptoms?”

“I don’t have any medical knowledge, so I don’t know.”

“Even without medical knowledge, aren’t there any reasons that come to mind?”

“No, there isn’t.”

Ko Sang-jun answered bluntly without changing his expression.

“Angel’s House is a daycare center under the Woosin Welfare Foundation, established for the purpose of Woosin’s social contribution. The current chairman of the Woosin Welfare Foundation is So Myeong-woo, but Mr. Ko Sang-jun has been the chairman for a long time, right?”

“Yes.”

“Mr. Ko Sang-jun often said through official channels that he established the Wooshin Welfare Foundation with the purpose of carrying on the legacy of his father, the founder. He also said that he personally designated each and every blind spot in welfare as a business area. Is that correct?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“The Angel’s House was heartbroken by the news that many children are separated from their parents for various reasons and are adopted overseas, and he said that he named the house after Mr. Ko Sang-jun’s father, who said, ‘All children are angels.’ He also said that all the children in the Angel’s House are considered to be Mr. Ko Sang-jun’s children or grandchildren. Is that correct?”

“Yes.”

“When I compared the list of victims with the list of youths who studied abroad at Angel’s House, the list of children who were adopted overseas, and the list of youths who were released for various reasons other than running away from home, they all matched. And some of them had their resident registrations canceled, meaning they were reported dead. Even though they were still alive and well. What do you think about this?”

“… … .”

Ko Sang-jun did not answer.

I continued speaking without waiting.

“I heard that children who belonged to that angel’s house were sent abroad to a place where they couldn’t speak the language and were imprisoned, assaulted, raped, etc… .”

I paused for a moment and caught my breath.

“… … Did you hear about it through the media without knowing anything about it?”

“Yes.”

“How did you feel when you heard that news?”

“… … I felt devastated.”

Ko Sang-jun said with a frown.

It wasn’t an overreaction.

But it didn’t feel like I was answering dryly.

It seemed like he was suppressing his sad feelings and speaking as he did so.

“What kind of feeling do you mean by feeling miserable?”

“I stepped down from my position as chairman of the Woosin Welfare Foundation to focus on the Woosin Group’s business, but I never forgot the purpose of its establishment. Nevertheless, I feel a deep sense of responsibility for the fact that this incident occurred because I failed to properly manage and supervise the person in charge.”

“Then, I hope that Mr. Ko Sang-jun also hopes that whoever committed such an absurd criminal act, and in such an organized manner, will be thoroughly investigated and severely punished.”

“… … Yes.”

“On August 26, medical staff from Seoul Wooshin Hospital and Shinkaku University in Japan were caught illegally transplanting the heart of Ms. Park, a child from Angel’s House, to Hiroki Onodera, the grandson of Masao Onodera, at Ribbon Medical Center in Miseong. Are you aware of this?”

“I know.”

“In the audio file submitted by Ms. Kim Mi-ja, it is confirmed that Onodera Masao planned an illegal heart transplant surgery with Mr. Ko Sang-jun and paid a huge amount of money to Mr. Ko Sang-jun for this purpose. In addition, there is a content in which Mr. Ko Yoon-soo, who received instructions from Mr. Ko Sang-jun, personally explains the process of the illegal transplant surgery. What do you think about this?”

“… … .”

When Heo Min-woo previously called in Ko Yoon-soo and asked him about this fact, Ko Yoon-soo said, “Since Satoshi Oda claims wiretapping, I cannot recognize its evidentiary value, and I will reject any statement based on the recording file.”

It seemed like Ko Sang-jun had the same strategy.

He didn’t necessarily bring his lawyer forward to speak, but he didn’t open his mouth either.

“These are the results of the investigation that the Japanese police, who began investigating Satoshi Oda’s claim that the recording files were created through wiretapping, sent to the special prosecutor’s team this morning.”

I placed two sheets of paper on the desk.

Since it was decided to conduct a cooperative investigation and documents would be exchanged in English, the original text was in English.

Although Sangjun Koh, who has a Ph.D., can read English, I prepared an extra page translated into Korean just in case.

[1. We checked Satoshi Oda’s cloud login records, server records, etc., and compared and reviewed Satoshi Oda’s location information at the time the records were created.

2. We compared and reviewed the PC used to access Satoshi Oda’s cloud and its storage history.

3. We analyzed detailed records such as the quality of the voice file.

Considering all three factors, we believe there is no significant reason to suspect wiretapping. We would like to inform you that the Japanese Metropolitan Police Department plans to send suspects such as Masao Onodera to the prosecution based on 18 audio files including ‘20120428_192809’ as evidence.]

Koh Sang-jun and the lawyer read the documents quickly with their eyes without moving an inch.

With Onodera and Satoshi Oda, as well as many Japanese political figures who were particularly close to them, resigning one after another, there would have been no outlet to hear the news.

This document came directly to the special prosecution team, and right in front of me, so there would have been no room for it to leak through domestic connections.

“Based on this, I will ask again. The conversation in the recorded file was based on the clear premise that Mr. Ko Sang-jun, along with Masao Onodera and Satoshi Oda, attempted an illegal heart transplant.”

I started reviewing the documents a week before the special prosecution team unveiling ceremony, so I gave all the recorded files, which were over 40 hours long, to a stenographer to create a transcript.

Lee Ye-jin handed me a file, and I opened it between Ko Sang-jun and the lawyer.

And then he pointed to the part marked with a highlighter.

“Onodera Masao and Oda Satoshi said that they had a direct phone call with Mr. Ko Sang-jun. Previously, Kim Soo-chan and Gong Won-ho of the secretary team of the strategy office confessed to committing crimes such as human trafficking under the pretense of following Ko Sang-jun’s instructions. So why do Onodera Masao and Oda Satoshi keep saying that they had a direct phone call with Ko Sang-jun? And why does Ko Yoon-soo say that she conveyed her father’s wishes?”

“… … .”

“Is Mr. Ko Yoon-soo the son of Kim Soo-chan? Mr. Ko Sang-jun, isn’t he your eldest son?”

At that moment, anger flashed through Go Sang-jun’s eyes.

But that gaze was only fleeting.

He narrowed his eyes again and answered in a hoarse voice.

“I will refuse to testify.”

“Yes, then let’s go back to what we were talking about earlier. Mr. Koh Sang-jun, the land of Ribbon Medical Center, where Hiroki Onodera performed his heart surgery, was owned by a company called RND. Are you aware of this as well?”

“… … I heard about it through the media.”

“This RND is presumed to be the successor to KDL Company, whose major shareholder was a paper company called L&B, previously owned by Mr. Ko Sang-jun. What do you think about this?”

“It has nothing to do with anything.”

“L&B is your property, right?”

In response to my question, Ko Sang-jun sighed and nodded.

Can you say no?

A document with the three characters of my name clearly written on it came out.

More than anything, we need a picture that acknowledges this much.

“Is it because they are the ones who established RND as Kim Soo-chan and Park Won-ho claim?”

“… … .”

“RND purchased over 90% of the real estate that KDL Company sold just before it went out of business. Did Mr. Koh Sang-jun not know about this at all?”

“I had no idea.”

“Are you saying that Mr. Ko Sang-jun has absolutely no involvement with organ trafficking or prostitution using children from Angel’s Home?”

“Yes.”

“Did you know that Angel’s House runs a program to select gifted students and send them to study abroad at a sister school in Japan?”

“Yes, I knew.”

“How much involvement was Mr. Koh Sang-jun?”

“The study abroad program began as a suggestion from affiliates who favorably viewed the Woosin Welfare Foundation’s work, and I was initially only involved in the system, and the rest was handled by the practitioners. Since there is so much to do, it is realistically difficult to directly participate in all the processes.”

“Then, did Mr. Ko Sang-jun accept it because he thought it would be good for the children without knowing much about it?”

“Rather than not knowing much about it, we reviewed the program content at the planning stage and expected that the opinions provided by the practitioners after conducting the field trip would have a positive impact. That’s why we approved the study abroad program.”

“I only gave permission, but Mr. Ko Sang-jun was not involved in the study abroad program at all, so I didn’t know anything. The Angel House managers used the study abroad program without Mr. Ko Sang-jun’s knowledge to commit human trafficking. In summary, is that correct?”

“Yes.”

As I looked at Lee Ye-jin, she neatly placed several photos that had been stuck in a file on the desk.

“Press releases related to the Angel’s House Japan study abroad program, a commemorative photo taken by the children selected as gifted and the program staff, etc.”

I pointed to the parts marked with a red pen on the photo.

“Check out the list of sponsors for study abroad programs. Iljoong Ilbo, Korea Gifted Development Association, what else is there?”

“… … .”

I tapped the marked area with my fingertips once again.

“This is not a statement. I want you to read it literally. What does it say?”

Ko Sang-jun glared at me.

The wrinkled hands on the desk were trembling.

“What does it say?”

I pressed for an answer.

Then, Ko Sang-jun opened his dry lips like the stump of a dead tree.

“It says L&B… ….”