"Or Not?"... Civic Group Files Complaint Against Joo Kwang-deok for Alleging 'Lee Sung-yoon Text Messages'

"Serious criminal acts that damage social reputation or honor"

Joo Kwang-deok, Liberty Korea Party member / Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Suwan] The controversy surrounding Rep. Joo Gwang-deok of the Liberty Korea Party, who claimed that Lee Seong-yoon, Chief Prosecutor of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, sent mocking text messages to some prosecutors regarding the recent prosecution personnel reshuffle on the 12th, is escalating. A civic group has filed a complaint against Rep. Joo for defaming the prosecutor's reputation.

On the 15th, the Anti-Corruption National Participation Solidarity and others announced, "We are filing a complaint against Rep. Joo for defamation and defamation by publication related to spreading fake news and false information about Chief Prosecutor Lee," and disclosed the receipt of the complaint filed with the National Police Agency on the same day.

The group criticized, "Rep. Joo is aware that the text messages attributed to Chief Prosecutor Lee are false, yet he is likely to claim parliamentary immunity by excusing himself as merely relaying hearsay without verification, using phrases like 'if not, so be it' and 'reckless exposure.' This case is a serious criminal act where Rep. Joo maliciously defamed Chief Prosecutor Lee's social evaluation and honor."

They also reportedly filed complaints against Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl and former Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office Chief Bae Seong-beom on charges including forgery of official documents and use of forged official documents, alleging that the prosecution investigating the Blue House's ordered investigation suspicions and the Ulsan mayoral election interference suspicions "arbitrarily listed items not included in the search warrant issued by the court when searching the Blue House."

Earlier, Rep. Joo claimed that Lee Seong-yoon, Director of the Prosecutor's Office at the Ministry of Justice and newly appointed Chief Prosecutor of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, sent mocking and harsh text messages to several prosecutors who were demoted shortly after the Ministry of Justice's prosecution personnel reshuffle.

At a press conference at the National Assembly, Rep. Joo stated, "Director Lee, as the head of the prosecution personnel department, sent text messages containing mockery and harsh language to several high-ranking prosecutors who were subject to personnel changes," and added, "The messages were incomprehensible and seemed as if he had lost reason, intoxicated by power." However, Rep. Joo did not disclose the specific contents of the text messages allegedly sent by Director Lee.

The Ministry of Justice promptly rebutted by releasing the related text messages. In an official statement, the Ministry said, "The Director of the Prosecutor's Office did not send any text messages containing 'provocative or harsh language close to insults' to any of the high-ranking prosecutors who were subject to personnel changes before or after the recent reshuffle."

The released text messages included content such as, "I sincerely thank you for always supporting me with kind words and love. Thanks to your constant interest and help despite the difficult circumstances, I believe I have managed to come this far and am truly grateful. I earnestly pray that you have a blessed time filled with peace and rest."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.