Prosecutors have summoned the wife of main opposition Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung on Thursday afternoon, over allegations that she misused a corporate credit card when Lee was governor of Gyeonggi Province.

According to sources in the judicial community, the Suwon District Prosecutors' Office began a closed-door questioning of Kim Hye-kyung at 2 p.m. on suspicion of breach of duty.

The prosecution launched the investigation last year, after the state anti-corruption agency reviewed a complaint from former Gyeonggi provincial employee and whistleblower Cho Myeong-hyeon.

Cho had disclosed that Kim and a former provincial employee, identified by the surname Bae, used the corporate card for personal reasons.

Bae was eventually sentenced to ten months in prison, suspended for two years, for violating the Public Official Election Act.

Cho had also asked the anti-corruption agency to look into suspicions that Lee intentionally overlooked his wife's misappropriation of funds, and the agency has since transferred the case to the prosecution.