SEOUL, Opposition leader Lee Jae-myung called Tuesday for an investigation into allegations that former Gyeonggi Province Vice Gov. Lee Hwa-young was persuaded by a former chairman of Ssangbangwool Group to fabricate a statement on his involvement in the underwear conglomerate's unauthorized remittance to North Korea while drinking alcohol together at a prosecution office under the guard of prison officers. The allegations surfaced on April 4 when the imprisoned former vice governor claimed during his trial that he was coaxed by former Ssangbangwool Chairman Kim Sung-tae and the group's vice chairman, Bang Yong-cheol, into forging his statement on the remittance case while meeting with them over food and drinks inside a room of the Suwon District Prosecutors Office. But the Suwon prosecution has dismissed Lee's claim as an "absurd and outrageous lie," saying such a gathering can never be imagined under the current prisoner custody system. The former vice governor is now standing trial on charges of collud ing in Ssangbangwool's transfer of US$8 million (11.1 billion won) to North Korea between 2019 and 2020, bribery and political fund law violations, with prosecutors demanding a 15-year prison term for him in a hearing last week. Lee, the chairman of the main opposition Democratic Party, told reporters before attending a court hearing at the Seoul Central District Court that the former vice governor's remarks appear to be 100 percent true judging by the prosecution's attitude. "The prosecution is not supposed to dismiss the former vice governor's remarks as absurd. It just needs to check surveillance cameras, court attendance records and the statement of the concerned prison officers," Lee said. "Without an approval by prosecutors, it is impossible for accomplices to meet, discuss fabricating statements and drink together at the prosecution office. If prison officers had committed such a thing without instructions, it would have been a serious crime that deserves a prison sentence," he said. Lee Hwa-young served as vice governor while Lee Jae-myung was governor of Gyeonggi Province, which surrounds Seoul, from 2018-2021. According to prosecution officials, Lee Hwa-young said once that he had reported Ssangbangwool's North Korean remittance to Lee Jae-myung but reversed his statement later. Source: Yonhap News Agency