Seoul, Jan 3 (IANS) South Korean police on Tuesday issued an extradition order to get back the daughter of the so-called "female Rasputin", the woman at the centre of the country's biggest corruption scandal, after she was arrested in the Danish city of Aalborg.
The National Police Agency confirmed that it sent the request to Danish authorities through Interpol, Efe news reported.
A Danish court has extended the detention of 20-year-old Chung Yoo-ra until January 30, pending her extradition.
Chung was arrested in Aalborg on Sunday on charges of illegal residence in Denmark, after local police received information from a South Korean journalist about her whereabouts.
She told the Danish authorities that she is willing to return voluntarily to her home country if she is allowed to be with her one-year-old son, Yonhap news agency reported.
The prosecutors investigating the case asked Interpol on December 27, 2016, to place Chung on its red notice list after she was called to testify in court in South Korea.
Chung's mother, Choi Soon-il, is believed to be at the centre of the corruption plot and influence-peddling that led to the impeachment in December of South Korean President Park Geun-hye, who is now waiting for the constitutional court to decide whether the impeachment vote is valid.
Choi, a close friend of Park, is accused of involvement in state affairs despite not holding any official government role, and of using her influence with the president to extort large sums from Korean companies, among other charges.
The prosecution believes that the Samsung group, the country's largest conglomerate, signed a contract worth some 22 billion won ($17.4 million) with a company based in Germany owned by Choi, and also provided financial support for the equestrian training of her 20-year-old daughter.
Choi, her daughter and her grandson were in Germany when the scandal erupted. She returned to South Korea on October 30, 2016, and has since been held in custody.
--IANS
ksk/ap
|
|
Comments:
