[비즈한국] It is none other than his daughter, Art Center Nabi Director Noh So-young, who has revived the nightmare of former President Roh Tae-woo’s violent and illegal slush funds. In her divorce and property division lawsuit, Director Noh utilized a memo detailing her mother’s slush fund to gain a favorable position. Citing the "30 billion won for Sunkyung" mentioned in the memo, she argued that 30 billion won of the slush fund was loaned to Sunkyung, and therefore, the assets formed through that money were her rightful share. The court accepted this argument and ordered a cash payment of approximately 1.4 trillion won.
Director Noh So-young's divorce suit has once again emerged as a public concern, as it involves the collapse of a marriage between the son of a leading conglomerate chairman and the daughter of a president, which was the biggest issue of its time. In particular, this divorce suit has been dubbed the "divorce of the century" due to the astronomical property division ruling, capturing both domestic and international attention. Furthermore, the revival of the "Roh Tae-woo slush fund" nightmare during the litigation process has shocked the nation.
So, why did Director Noh play the dangerous "slush fund card"? Legal experts believe her desire to win the case was so strong that she was willing to use even the slush fund card. While her gambit worked in the appellate court, some analysts suggest it could become a shackle that holds her back. This is because the funds revealed by Director Noh were not purely family assets, but rather "dirty money" that her mother, First Lady Kim Ok-sook, had been hiding and managing—funds that had been violently extorted by her father, the former president.
Ultimately, suspicion is mounting that Director Noh knew the unrecovered slush funds, which should have been returned to the state, were being hidden, and that she deliberately used them as a trump card in the appeal. There is also no shortage of criticism that she is brazenly demanding "give me my money," claiming the black slush fund—created by the blood and sweat of the people—as her own.
In the legal community, it is believed that Director Noh was clearly aware that these were slush funds and that she, in consultation with her lawyers, not only established a winning strategy but also assessed potential future issues arising from the slush fund. While civil society groups ask, "How desperate must Director Noh have been to win the case to resort to the slush fund card?" they also argue that "Director Noh should have first issued a public apology regarding this slush fund." In fact, even though three months have passed since the appellate court ruling, Director Noh has not released any statement regarding these funds.
A legal source stated, "Director Noh So-young herself, and even her legal representatives, are remaining completely silent on this slush fund," adding, "It is judged that they have nothing to say, and they anticipate fierce backlash from the public."
About a month after her father, former President Roh Tae-woo, passed away in October 2021, Director Noh posted on her social media, "It is good that there is no inheritance to settle. There is only one house in Yeonhui-dong, which I conceded to my younger brother. Instead, I took a blanket." She later added, "Even though he only gave me one blanket..."
Director Noh So-young's claim that she only received a blanket has been revealed to be a pretentious media ploy in less than three years. Her father, Roh Tae-woo, left behind astronomical amounts of illegal slush funds for his family, and Director Noh herself inadvertently exposed it. Connecting her claims, it turns out that what her father left her was not just a blanket, but an inheritance worth approximately 1.4 trillion won, with the 30 billion won slush fund serving as the seed money.