"What's the big deal about free tickets?"… Barcelona friendly match invitation scandal: Police and public officials expected to be summoned in a row

*This content was translated by AI.View Original

The National Police Agency’s Major Duty Crime Investigation Team has expanded its investigation beyond the police force regarding suspicions of receiving complimentary invitations to last year’s friendly match between FC Barcelona and FC Seoul.

According to police on the 13th, the team recently received a formal request for an investigation into the case and has begun a thorough fact-finding process. The subjects of the investigation are individuals suspected of having received free invitations from the tournament sponsor ahead of the friendly match held at Seoul World Cup Stadium on July 31 last year.

To date, approximately 30 police officers have been placed under investigation, and it has been determined that public officials from other government ministries and journalists are also included among the subjects. The team plans to verify whether these individuals actually received invitations and how they obtained them, while focusing on examining any connection to their official duties or whether there was a quid pro quo involved.

Before fully launching its investigation, the police took preemptive personnel actions against two senior officials suspected of involvement. Former Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency 101 Security Unit Commander Son Chang-hyun (Commissioner) was transferred to serve as Director of the Public Safety Division at Daejeon Metropolitan Police Agency, while Incheon Airport Police Unit Commander Kim Yong-jong was placed on standby duty. In response, Son’s side denied the suspicions, stating, "It is true that we received an invitation proposal from a company official, but we declined because we could not leave our jurisdiction unattended."

Meanwhile, the Major Duty Crime Investigation Team handling this case is a dedicated investigative unit established directly under the National Investigation Headquarters in September to fundamentally prevent internal police misconduct and suspicions of collusion.

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*This content was translated by AI.View Original