The prosecution urgently arrested an incumbent senior judge on Thursday on suspicion of taking bribes from Nature Republic founder Jung Woon-ho in a widening probe into a high-profile corruption scandal plaguing the justice system.

The Seoul Central Prosecutors’ Office arrested the 56-year-old judge at around 2:30 a.m., identified only by his surname Kim, without a warrant, citing his unstable mental state. The arrest came 17 hours after the prosecutors grilled him over his ties with the 50-year-old business tycoon.

An “urgent” arrest can be made in only exceptional cases where there are risks of suspects fleeing or being mentally unstable. The prosecution needs to apply for a warrant within 48 hours to formally arrest him. 

The senior judge is suspected of buying a secondhand SUV, which had been owned by Jung, at a below market price and being paid back a portion of the money from the purchase in 2014.  

Kim and Jung were allegedly close and went on a trip to Vietnam together. The travel expenses were mostly covered by Jung, the prosecution said. 

In return for the kickbacks worth hundreds of millions of won, Jung allegedly asked the judge to hand out a heavy sentence for suspects who sold fake products of Nature Republic in the market. 

In three rulings regarding the cosmetics firm from September to November last year, Kim reportedly delivered a sentence, heavier than a lower court, on some suspects, which many suspect is a result of Jung’s illegal lobbying, prosecutors said. The judge denied all accusations.

The judge took a leave of absence on Aug. 16 in the face of looming suspicions over his dubious deals with Jung. He will be on leave until February.

The prosecution is also looking into why the judge kept several 1 million won checks issued by Jung. The judge argued that the money was to offer condolences at a funeral.

Jung himself was indicted last October on charges of illegal gambling from 2012 to 2014 in Macau, the Philippines and other overseas locations. The lower court handed down a one-year prison term, but the appeals court reduced it to eight months.

A series of corruption allegations involving business owners and high-ranking judges, prosecutors and lawyers have marred the reputation of the nation’s justice system.

In June, prosecutor-turned-lawyer Hong Man-pyo was indicted over suspicions that he evaded taxes and peddled influence in the judiciary to seek a lenient ruling for his client Jung.

The prosecutors also indicted judge-turned-lawyer Choi You-jeong on charges of taking advantage of her status as a former judge to seek a favorable ruling for Jung. In return, she is suspected of having received 5 billion won in attorney fees.

Ex-senior prosecutor Jin Kyung-joon was indicted in late July on charges of benefiting from shady stock transactions and accepting bribes from Kim Jung-ju, founder of the nation’s largest game maker Nexon.

The prosecution on Wednesday released a set of measures to fight irregularities involving legal professionals, though critics said that it was insufficient and a repetition of former policies.

The measures include the establishment of task forces under each district prosecutors’ office to probe corruption cases involving lawyers and brokers and a plan to operate new teams specialized in intelligence gathering and monitoring high-ranking prosecutors.

By Ock Hyun-ju (laeticia.ock@heraldcorp.com)