Prosecutors have requested an arrest warrant for a former professional football coach on charges of receiving bribes in return for signing players, judicial officials said Thursday.
The Seoul Central District Prosecutors Office made the request on Wednesday against Lim Jong-heon, former head coach of Ansan Greeners FC, a K League 2 club, on suspicion that he pocketed 40 million won (US$30,630) from a football agent surnamed Choi in exchange for selecting two South Korean players while serving as head coach of Thailand's Navy FC from 2018 to 2019.
In addition, Lim is accused of defrauding a football player of 60 million won after promising to get him into a pro team.
Lim has reportedly denied his bribery charges.
The prosecution has also sought an arrest warrant for Choi, 36, on charges of giving bribes to Lim and others.
Choi is additionally suspected of having paid 20 million won to a pro football club coach and 7 million won to a university football team coach, asking for their help in getting some players into pro teams. Choi is also suspected of taking 20 million won from one player by falsely promising to get him into a pro team. The total amount of money Choi had paid to football coaches and others in exchange for signing new players from 2018 to 2021 was found to be 67 million won, the judicial officials said.
The prosecution also requested an arrest warrant for a former Yonsei University football team coach, surnamed Shin, on charges of receiving 60 million won from Choi in exchange for helping three players join pro teams from 2017 to 2018.
Source: Yonhap News Agency