Chung Yoo-ra

Chung Yoo-ra (born Chung Yoo-yeon, 30 October 1996) is a South Korean equestrian.[1] She competed in the 2014 Asian Games, where her team won a gold medal.[2]

For the handball player, see Jung Yu-ra.
In this Korean name, the family name is Chung.
Chung Yoo-ra
Personal information
Birth nameChung Yoo-yeon
Born (1996-10-30) October 30, 1996
Seoul, South Korea
EducationChungdam High School (diploma revoked)
Ewha College (expelled)
Spouse(s)Sin Ju-pyung (m. 2015–2016)
Korean name
Hangul
Hanja
Revised RomanizationJeong Yu-ra
McCune–ReischauerChŏng Yu-ra
Birth name
Hangul
Hanja
Revised RomanizationJeong Yu-yeon
McCune–ReischauerChŏng Yu-yŏn
Medal record
Equestrian
Representing  South Korea
Asian Games
Gold medal – first place 2014 Incheon Team dressage

She is a daughter of Chung Yoon-hoi and his ex-wife Choi Soon-sil,[3][4] who has been arrested amid the 2016 South Korean political scandal for using her friendship with the president Park Geun-hye to illegally interfere in state affairs. Choi solicited business donations from top South Korean firms, including Samsung, for a nonprofit organization that was controlled by her.[5]

Controversy

Alleged preferential admission to games

Ahn Min-Seok is a member of the New Politics Alliance for Democracy (NAPD) and alleges that favors were exchanged to make sure that Chung Yoo-Ra would participate in the Incheon Asian Games.[6]

Alleged preferential school treatment

Chung Yoo-Ra only attended 86, out of 205, days of class during her third year at the Sunhwa Arts Middle School. Furthermore, she was completely absent for 42 days of class and left early without permission at 46 instances because of her equestrian training and competitions. The school only excused her for 3 absences and 6 instances of tardiness when she was sick. At the time, Song Ki-Seok, an administrator at the School District of Seoul, knew about her absenteeism but did nothing about it.

Chungdam High School expelled her for excessive absenteeism, but Choi Soon-sil successfully appealed the expulsion by producing an official letter from the Korean Racing Association. However, on December 5, 2016, the Board of Education of the School District of Seoul revoked her high school diploma. The board further accuses her of bribing her high school teacher for a perfect score at her exit examination and forging her records at an equestrian competition that she never participated in.[7]

She allegedly lied about winning a gold medal at the Asian Games during her admission interview for Ewha College (a women's college).[8] Professors also allegedly gave her credits that she did not deserve. When suspicions arose, Chung Yoo-Ra suddenly applied online for a leave of absence from the college[9] but ultimately did not complete her application.[10]

On December 2, 2016, and after a special investigation, Ewha College's Audit Committee requested the college to expel Chung Yoo-Ra,[11] revoke her admission, and discipline the corrupt professors. On December 5, 2016, she received a letter from the board which revoked her high school diploma and a letter of expulsion from her college but decided to not appeal those decisions.[12]

Alleged K-Sports Foundation embezzlement

Chung Yoo-Ra allegedly embezzled funds from the K-Sports Foundation, which was used by Choi Soon-Sil to solicit bribes from South Korean conglomerates. Choi also used a number of shell companies to facilitate her crimes. Choi closed these companies on the same day that the Mir Foundation and K-Sports Foundation were in the news for illicit activities.[13]

Arrest by Danish local police

On January 2, 2017, Lee Ga-hyuk, a reporter from the JTBC Newsroom, tracked down Chung Yoo-Ra's Volkswagen, which was parked inside the garage of her Aalborg hideout. A Korean resident in Denmark suspected Chung of illegal immigration and reported her to the local police, who promptly arrested her.

Expulsion from the Korea Equestrian Association

On April 17, 2017, the Korean Racing Association permanently expelled and banned Chung Yoo-ra from both international and domestic competitions because of her admissions scandal. It also ordered her to return the stipend that was paid by the national team.[14]

During the investigations of the 2016 South Korean political scandal, Ewha College revoked her admission due to "preferential treatment in admissions and grading".[15][16][17] The board of the School District of Seoul also revoked her high school diploma because she falsified her high school records.[18]

In December 2016, South Korea put out an arrest warrant for Chung Yoo-ra for charges including obstruction of justice after she refused to return from Germany to attend a parliamentary inquiry about her role in the scandal.[19] The South Korean government announced that it would invalidate her passport and seek her arrest and extradition from Germany.[19] The South Korean government also sought the help of Interpol to track her down.[20] On January 1, 2017, some South Korean journalists managed to track her down in Aalborg and tipped the Danish police of her whereabouts, who promptly arrested her.[21][20]

The German Federal Police are investigating Chung Yoo-ra and her mother for money laundering involving assets that are estimated at more than 1 billion US dollars.[22][20] [23][24]

References
  1. "Yoora Chung". fei.org. Retrieved 7 October 2016.
  2. Park, Sojung (20 September 2014). "S. Korea wins gold in team dressage equestrian at Asiad". Yonhap. Retrieved 7 October 2016.
  3. "Swirling Scandal Involving Shamanistic Cult Threatens South Korean President Park Geun-hye : The Two-Way". NPR. 2016-10-29. Retrieved 2017-03-24.
  4. Kim, Oi-hyun (3 December 2014). "Pres. Park's former aide and his wife may be at the center of ongoing scandal". The Hankyoreh. Retrieved 7 October 2016.
  5. "South Korea scandal: President Park's friend Choi detained - BBC News". BBC News. November 2016. Retrieved 2017-03-24.
  6. "뉴스토마토". www.newstomato.com. Retrieved 2019-09-30.
  7. "정유라 '고교 졸업취소 처분' 최종 결정". KBS 뉴스 (in Korean). Retrieved 2019-09-30.
  8. "최순실 딸, 이대 의류학과 '학점특혜' 의혹". 서울신문 (in Korean). 2016-10-12. Retrieved 2019-09-30.
  9. "[단독] 최순실 딸 정유라 돌연 이대 휴학… 커지는 의혹". news.kmib.co.kr (in Korean). 2016-10-13. Retrieved 2019-09-30.
  10. "최순실 딸 정유라, 결국 이대 자퇴…조만간 귀국하나?". news.jtbc.joins.com (in Korean). 2016-11-11. Retrieved 2019-09-30.
  11. 안홍석 (2016-12-02). ""정유라 퇴학·입학취소…전 입학처장 등 5명 중징계"(종합)". 연합뉴스 (in Korean). Retrieved 2019-09-30.
  12. 이지헌 (2016-12-07). "정유라 변호인 "특검 소환하면 순응해야…끈 떨어진 도망자"". 연합뉴스 (in Korean). Retrieved 2019-09-30.
  13. "최순실 의혹 불거지자 도망가듯 '폐업' : 정치 : 뉴스 : 채널A". Archived from the original on 2016-10-20.
  14. "연합뉴스TV". www.yonhapnewstv.co.kr. Retrieved 2019-09-30.
  15. "Chung Yoo-ra's admission to Ewha to be canceled". koreatimes. 2016-11-18. Retrieved 2016-11-28.
  16. Herald, The Korea (2016-11-18). "Chung illegally admitted to Ewha University: ministry". Retrieved 2016-11-28.
  17. "Prosecutors raid university over influence-peddling scandal". koreatimes. 2016-11-22. Retrieved 2016-11-28.
  18. "Choi Soon-sil's daughter stripped of high school diploma". koreatimes. 2016-12-05. Retrieved 2016-12-05.
  19. "What we know about Chung Yoo Ra, daughter of key figure in South Korea's corruption scandal involving President Park". The Straits Times. 23 December 2016. Retrieved 2 January 2017.
  20. "South Korea scandal: Daughter of Choi Soon-sil arrested". BBC News. 2 January 2017. Retrieved 2 January 2017.
  21. "South Korean woman detained by Danish police". Mynewsdesk. Archived from the original on 2017-01-03. Retrieved 2017-01-02.
  22. "PD Report Tracking down Chung Yoo-Ra Runaway Footsteps in German". Sports Kyung Hyang. Retrieved 2017-01-02.
  23. "German Police keep investigating Chung Yoo Ra Money Laundering Case in German". MBC. Retrieved 2017-01-04.
  24. "(LEAD) Danish court extends detention of daughter of woman at center of Korean scandal". English.yonhapnews.co.kr. Retrieved 2017-03-24.
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