Seoul: Former first lady Kim Keon Hee's mother, Choi Eun-soon, and elder brother, Kim Jin-woo, appeared before a special counsel team on Tuesday to undergo questioning regarding their alleged evasion of development fees associated with an apartment construction project conducted a decade ago.

According to Yonhap News Agency, Choi and Kim Jin-woo are suspects in a case where they are accused of causing financial losses to the state by allegedly evading development fees worth 1.75 billion won (approximately US$1.22 million). The project in question involved constructing an apartment complex in Yangpyeong, located east of Seoul, and took place between 2011 and 2016. Choi led the project under the company ESI and D until 2014, after which her son assumed leadership.

The company is suspected of falsifying documents to underreport profits by exaggerating construction costs for the 350-unit apartment complex, despite reportedly earning 80 billion won from the project. This alleged underreporting was aimed at reducing the development fees owed by the company.

Initially, the Yangpyeong County government imposed a development fee of 1.75 billion won in November 2016 but decided to scrap it entirely in June 2017 following two complaints. Allegations of preferential treatment emerged ahead of the March 2022 presidential election, won by Yoon Suk Yeol, the husband of former first lady Kim Keon Hee. Subsequently, in November 2021, the county government belatedly imposed a development fee of 187 million won on ESI and D.

The police investigation into the matter led to the indictments of five individuals, including Kim Jin-woo. However, the former first lady, who once served as a director at ESI and D, and their mother were not charged. In cases where losses exceeding 500 million won are caused to the central or local government, the punishment can be life imprisonment or a prison term of at least five years.