SEOUL: South Korean investigators on Wednesday detained the state-run pension fund chief as they expand a probe into a corruption scandal to determine whether President Park Geun-Hye took bribes from conglomerates including Samsung.
A special prosecutor has been investigating whether Samsung bribed Park’s confidant, Choi Soon-Sil, to win state approval for a controversial merger of two of its units in July last year.
National Pension Service chief Moon Hyung-Pyo, who served as health minister until August 2015, is accused of pressuring the state pension fund to back the merger.
Moon has denied all allegations but was taken into emergency detention after a key NPS official told investigators he was pressured by the health ministry to vote for the merger, Yonhap news agency said.
Investigators have to decide whether to seek a warrant to formally arrest Moon before the emergency detention period expires in 48 hours.
