Prosecutors announced that they will take a former Sambu Construction executive into custody in connection with a stock manipulation scheme potentially tied to former first lady Kim Keon-hee.

The special counsel team investigating the former first lady announced Friday morning that it would charge and detain former Sambo Construction Vice Chairman and WellBiotech Chairman Lee Ki-hoon.

Lee stands accused of conspiring with other executives in 2023 to inflate Sambu’s share price through false press releases about Ukrainian reconstruction projects, generating illicit gains of 36-point-nine billion won, or about 26 million U.S. dollars.

The team said that Lee will also be questioned about related manipulation allegations involving WellBiotech.

Separately, investigators questioned a senior Cultural Heritage Administration official about whether Kim had held a private tea gathering at the Jongmyo Shrine, a UNESCO World Heritage site, last year. 

The special counsel also summoned a former aide to Unification Church leader Han Hak-ja and a detained Transport Ministry official tied to the Yangpyeong Expressway scandal.