Choi paid for Park's cosmetic treatment, probe claims

Choi Soon-sil, the 'South Korean Rasputin' paid for her close friend and former South Korean President Park Geun-hye to go under the knife was revealed by a parliamentary committee on Wednesday.

The committee was investigating the former President's corruption scandal.

Choi allegedly paid $936,360 to an anti-aging treatment clinic in Seoul between 2011 and 2014 for 27 services provided to Park Geun-hye, committee member Hwang Young-cheul said, Efe news reported.

These transactions provide new evidence into the relationship between Park and Choi, a bizarre plot of extortion and influence peddling that led Parliament to remove Park from office, Hwang told South Korean news agency Yonhap.

The bills received by the parliamentary committee include a total of 29 treatments paid for by Choi and her sister, Choi Soon-deuk.

They signed the bills with pseudonyms such as "VIP," "President Park" and "Blue," an allusion to the Blue House -- a name given to the South Korean presidential office.

Among these bills are 27 prescribed services for Park herself, such as blood tests and personalised anti-aging treatments, according to the committee.

It also noted that Choi's sister paid another $911,000 of their total cost.

"The prescription by proxy to help Park receive shots, and having Choi pay for them could be problematic," said Hwang, one of the ruling party's former deputies who was critical of the President.

Choi was currently in prison, accused of meddling in state affairs despite not holding any official position, besides extorting large sums of money from Korean companies and appropriating part of it for personal use.

--IANS

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