You Have Been Defended [EN]: Chapter 199

You Have Been Defended – Episode 199

The prosecution’s investigation began by focusing on Ji Han-cheol, Kim Jin-hyung, and Lee Bo-yeon, who held shares in Myunghwa Pharmaceuticals.

The others involved were connected through school, regional, or family ties, making it difficult to obtain search and seizure warrants without concrete evidence.

The Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) provided the prosecution with data confirming that these three individuals had been holding Myunghwa Pharmaceutical shares since before the approval of Antrozol Alpha, as we had revealed in our internet broadcast.

This included the fact that they sold off their shares as soon as the market opened the day after our broadcast revealed their ownership.

Consequently, the court issued search and seizure warrants for their homes, and I accompanied the team as a commissioned investigator.

I was in a van heading to Ji Han-cheol’s house.

We prioritized Ji Han-cheol because his crime appeared to be the most serious, and we believed the most significant evidence was likely to be found there.

During the drive, Jung Chang-yoon, who had been silently gazing out the window, spoke up.

“You didn’t have to come.”

It sounded like he was questioning my presence.

But the same could be said for Jung Chang-yoon.

Typically, investigators handle search and seizure operations, with prosecutors rarely present.

This time, it seemed the prosecutors were directly involved because the team was divided into three locations.

“I might be of help.”

Ji Han-cheol’s residence was located in an exclusive, high-end neighborhood within the four main gates of the city [the traditional center of Seoul].

It’s a very expensive area where politicians, chaebols [large business conglomerate owners], and celebrities reside.

Kang Min-jae also lives here.

He threw a fit this morning, insisting on coming with me.

It feels like raising a child.

“We are from the Western District Prosecutor’s Office. We are here to execute the search and seizure warrant issued on July 21, 2010. Madam, please put down what you are holding. Ji Han-cheol, remain where you are and do not move.”

As the investigator from Jung Chang-yoon’s team spoke, the other investigators began a thorough search of the house.

The primary target was the ledger.

Given Ji Han-cheol’s 0.1% stake in Myunghwa Pharmaceutical, it was highly likely he had exchanged something with Kim Hyung-joong, the CEO of Myunghwa Pharmaceutical.

Specifically, if he received the shares as a bribe, there would likely be written documentation.

No matter how much they conspire for illicit purposes, they tend to create a paper trail.

“Ugh, the fish look so disgusting.”

The investigators standing before the large fish tank built into the living room wall opened the tank cover and spoke.

They rolled up their sleeves, put on gloves, and began searching the bottom of the tank by hand.

One might ask, who keeps documents like this these days?

However, even if you recover data from a computer’s hard drive, everything can be revealed. Plus, many older individuals prefer to write by hand because they distrust technology.

Furthermore, in anticipation of searches and seizures, they often hide things in unexpected places, using their lifelong creativity.

Common hiding spots include toilets and bathroom ceilings. I’ve even seen cases where documents were hidden inside a daughter’s teddy bear.

I watched them busily moving about and slowly made my way to the second floor.

The house, with its luxurious ambiance created by indirect lighting, clearly had significant investment in its interior design from the start.

It was a prime example of Korean traditional house interior design, with elements reminiscent of tile-roofed houses in Samcheong-dong [a traditional and affluent neighborhood in Seoul] visible throughout.

It would have cost more than a Western-style interior, but did he accumulate this much wealth with just 0.1% of Myunghwa Pharmaceutical shares?

“…….”

As I climbed the stairs, I paused midway.

A large painting that covered the wall suddenly caught my eye.

It was a painting I had seen before.

Turning my head, I noticed a small piece of paper next to the painting.

[Yang Jin-hwa,

Oil on canvas.]

The work information was displayed elegantly, as if in an art gallery.

After carefully examining the second floor, I returned to the first floor and opened the laptop the investigators had brought.

Ji Han-cheol, his wife, and the housekeeper were sitting quietly on the sofa, watching the investigators. I sat in the kitchen, avoiding their gaze, and searched for the painting on the laptop.

[Umi Gallery]

The top search result was a gallery with a familiar name.

Umi Gallery.

On the surface, it appeared to be a place for chaebols’ refined hobbies, but it was more than that.

It had a reputation as a money-laundering hub for chaebols.

Why was this painting from Umi Gallery in Ji Han-cheol’s house?

‘Painter Yang Jin-hwa.’

Searching for the painter’s name on the portal revealed the price range at which his paintings were traded.

Mostly between 200 million and 300 million won [approximately $150,000 to $225,000 USD].

This amount was sufficient as a reward for assisting with the approval of Antrozol Alpha.

He could have received more, but he likely wasn’t greedy beyond this.

Ji Han-cheol, who already owned a significant amount of Myunghwa Pharmaceutical shares, would have anticipated another payoff: a surge in stock prices.

“Prosecutor Jung.”

I led Jung Chang-yoon, who was exiting the bathroom, to the stairs leading to the second floor.

Lowering my voice as much as possible, I said,

“This painting is from Umi Gallery.”

“……Umi Gallery, then…”

“I’m referring to the money-laundering operation in Gahoe-dong [an affluent neighborhood in Seoul]. The painting appears to be worth around 200 to 300 million won. Is there a way to determine when this painting arrived here?”

“Are you suggesting that this painting might have been a payment for approving Antrozol Alpha?”

“Probably. It’s hard to imagine Ji Han-cheol being a genuine art enthusiast. This is the only painting in the entire house. Someone like him wouldn’t even know about Umi Gallery. Besides, it’s a Western painting, and Ji Han-cheol’s taste is completely different.”

His house was filled with oriental antique furniture.

This painting clashed completely with the aesthetic evident throughout the house.

The fact that he brought such a painting here suggests he received it as a gift rather than purchasing it himself.

And if that painting came from Umi Gallery, it’s even more likely.

“It’s confirmed that this painting was at Umi Gallery until January of this year. The information is publicly available online.”

“We need to request data from Umi Gallery.”

Even if we request data, Umi Gallery won’t readily provide it.

It’s a place favored by numerous chaebols, and tarnishing its reputation in this way would be detrimental. If such a money-laundering failure were exposed, it would undoubtedly lose clients.

“Instead, let’s do this.”

* * *

[Oh Jin-sik, the head of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), admitted to irregularities in the appointment process for members of the Central Pharmaceutical Affairs Review Committee, which approved Antrozol Alpha, and expressed his intention to resign.

Furthermore, the FDA decided to revoke the approval of Antrozol Alpha instead of temporarily suspending it. In response, Myunghwa Pharmaceutical announced that it would challenge the FDA’s decision through administrative litigation to clear Antrozol Alpha’s name.

Following the Antrozol Alpha approval case, concerns have been raised about the FDA’s practice of approving drugs based solely on document reviews without conducting direct clinical trials. However, some argue that the FDA lacks the manpower to be directly involved in clinical trials, and that other countries also rely on document reviews for drug approvals. They contend that the issue isn’t the process itself, but rather the institution’s lack of transparency…….]

“No, how on earth did you manage to get the FDA to fire its head so quickly?”

Choi Jong-hyun repeatedly expressed his amazement while watching the news.

It was the perfect outcome I had hoped for.

Now, Myunghwa Pharmaceutical will file an administrative lawsuit against the FDA to overturn the revocation of Antrozol Alpha’s approval, leading to a protracted legal battle.

In the process of fighting each other, Myunghwa Pharmaceutical will desperately seek out the FDA’s weaknesses, and the FDA will strive to expose Myunghwa Pharmaceutical’s problems.

Especially with the presidential election approaching, the outcome is predictable, as seen with Oh Jin-sik, the head of the FDA, who resigned to minimize damage to the Minwoo Party [a fictional political party].

The Minwoo Party wants to avoid being associated with Myunghwa Pharmaceutical’s unethical behavior at all costs.

But what good is it to distance themselves now and claim they don’t want to be involved?

They were already closely connected.

And with the Financial Supervisory Service launching a full-scale investigation, delisting [from the stock exchange] is likely.

Of course, Choi Jong-hyun and Jo Bong-joon will have to work harder until then.

“Heave-ho, it’s done.”

Jo Bong-joon, who had been jumping up and down to hang the Taegeukgi [South Korean flag] on the veranda to celebrate Liberation Day [August 15th, celebrating Korea’s liberation from Japanese rule], shook his hands and entered the living room.

“What happened? Tell me. You’re a temporary investigator, but you’re keeping secrets from us. We also have a stake in this case! Think of all the suffering we endured!”

It’s true that I clammed up after being asked to keep things confidential, but Choi Jong-hyun and Jo Bong-joon also said they had done everything they needed to do and were going to relax, so they were too busy having fun to say anything.

Well, thanks to that, I was able to focus all my energy on this investigation, which is why the results came out faster than expected.

“It’s nothing special. The head of the FDA was caught taking money from Myunghwa Pharmaceutical.”

“How?”

“A painting was found in Ji Han-cheol’s house. It came from Umi Gallery and is worth hundreds of millions of won.”

When I initially questioned Ji Han-cheol about the painting, he lied and said he had purchased it.

However, he couldn’t produce a purchase receipt or prove that he had paid money to Umi Gallery.

So, the prosecution threatened him, who was already facing imprisonment for unfair stock trading, that they would ensure he rotted in prison for the rest of his life because of that painting.

Finally, Ji Han-cheol confessed that he had received the painting as a gift from the CEO of Myunghwa Pharmaceutical and handed over the CCTV footage from the day the painting arrived at his house.

The entire CCTV system installed in his house was naturally included in the search and seizure data, but we were surprised to find no such footage in the initial video.

However, the suspicious Ji Han-cheol said he had kept it separate, worried that Kim Hyung-joong might later deny knowing anything if things went south.

It was a valuable lesson: never fully trust people, even if you’re in the same boat.

Anyway, the prosecution analyzed all the CCTV footage from the roads the truck from Umi Gallery took to Ji Han-cheol’s house.

They captured the scene of the truck stopping by Ji Han-cheol’s house and then entering the house of Oh Jin-sik, the head of the FDA, which led to a search warrant for Oh Jin-sik’s house as well.

The painting in Oh Jin-sik’s house was by a foreign painter and worth 1 billion won [approximately $750,000 USD]. Oh Jin-sik also claimed he had purchased it himself, like Ji Han-cheol, but ultimately, he couldn’t prove anything and had no choice but to confess.

“Oh, Lawyer Cha is coming out.”

Park Young-gi, who was in charge of the prosecution briefing, brought me into the spotlight with him.

Of course, I was just standing behind with the other prosecutors.

One might think it’s natural since I was a commissioned investigator, but the fact that I, who wasn’t affiliated with the prosecution, appeared in such a setting was quite noticeable, and I received a lot of attention.

Among the reporters’ barrage of questions, quite a few were about my role in the investigation, so the goal of raising my profile was perfectly achieved.

“Lawyer Cha tried to stay hidden until the end, but he finally revealed himself.”

“That’s right. If Lawyer Cha did all the work and doesn’t get the credit, it’s unfair.”

I wasn’t upset, and I don’t regret revealing my involvement.

As expected, there was some forced criticism that I used Myunghwa Pharmaceutical to retaliate against Wooshin [likely a reference to a previous case or conflict], but it was meaningless since the approval of Antrozol Alpha had already been revoked.

“What are you going to do now, Lawyer Cha?”

“Revealing the truth should be left to the national institutions. But you two need to keep broadcasting. The FDA and Myunghwa Pharmaceutical are going to be in a lawsuit, so there will still be plenty of material coming out.”

“Of course, we have to keep going until Myunghwa Pharmaceutical is delisted.”

Choi Jong-hyun smiled.

“Ah, should we have a drink tonight? The case is in its final stages, so we should have a team dinner.”

“A dinner sounds good, but I can’t make it today.”

I said, collapsing onto the sofa.

“Ah, why! Lawyer Cha always says he doesn’t have time. He acts like he’s the most important person in the world.”

“……I really have an appointment today.”

I said, looking at my phone.

I’m worried about constantly refusing, so I’d like to have dinner together today if possible, but I can’t refuse the person I have a prior appointment with.

It’s none other than a call from former President Kang Kwan-woong.