The special counsel team in charge of the stock manipulation case linked to former first lady Kim Keon-hee has sought warrants to detain former and current executives of a construction company.

The team, led by special counsel Min Joong-ki, said Monday that it filed for the detention warrants for Sambu Construction Chairman Lee Il-jun and former Chairman Cho Sung-wok, along with a former vice chairman and a former CEO of the company, all of whom may face charges under the Capital Markets Act.

This is the first time the team has sought detention warrants since it launched its investigation earlier this month.

The four executives are accused of deceiving investors into buying the firm’s shares in 2023 on false information that it would take part in reconstruction projects in Ukraine, then selling off their shares at inflated prices.

They allegedly spread the false information to inflate share prices, possibly with the former first lady’s knowledge or involvement, and made illicit gains worth tens of billions of won.