Prosecutors Investigate 1,270 Election Offenders in 21st General Election... 90 Elected Officials Under Investigation

Both Total Number of Indicted Persons and Indicted Elected Officials Decrease... Likely Due to COVID-19 Impact

Provided by the Supreme Prosecutors' Office

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Seok-jin] As of the 15th, the day the 21st National Assembly general election was held, a total of 1,270 election-related offenders have been booked by the prosecution. It was also confirmed that investigations are underway for 90 elected candidates from this general election.

On the 16th, the Public Investigation Division of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office (Chief Prosecutor Bae Yong-won) announced that as of 12 PM the previous day, a total of 1,270 election offenders had been booked, of whom 16 were indicted. The prosecution reported that 9 election offenders were indicted while in detention.

This figure represents a 12.5% decrease compared to the 1,451 booked during the same period of the 20th general election. The prosecution analyzed that due to the impact of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), offline election campaigns decreased, and face-to-face contact between candidates and voters was reduced, leading to fewer complaints from third-party ordinary citizens.

Additionally, the prosecution stated that among the elected candidates of this general election, 94 have been booked, with 4 of them dismissed without indictment, and investigations are ongoing for the remaining 90.

During the 20th general election, 104 elected candidates were booked by election day, of whom 36 were indicted, and ultimately 7 elected candidates were invalidated.

Among the elected candidates of this general election, 9 are currently on trial, indicted for "obstruction of National Assembly meetings" under the National Assembly Act in relation to the Fast Track case.

By type, there were 467 cases (36.8%) of black propaganda offenses, 216 cases (17.0%) of bribery offenses, and 72 cases (5.7%) of public opinion manipulation offenses, among others.

Notably, the number of booked election violence and obstruction offenders was 81, more than double compared to 37 during the 20th election. Among them, 8 were detained.

Examples disclosed by the prosecution include ▲ charging at an election campaign vehicle with a kitchen knife in a stabbing posture to threaten the speaker ▲ verbally abusing the spouse of a candidate campaigning and assaulting campaign workers who tried to intervene ▲ entering an election office to damage office equipment and assault election staff ▲ tearing and damaging ballots at an early voting station, threatening an election commission staff investigating the incident by throwing objects, demanding a re-vote, and assaulting observers.

By investigation lead, there were 1,134 complaints and accusations and 136 cases initiated ex officio, with complaints and accusations accounting for 89.3%. Among these, 402 complaints were filed by the election commission, making up 35.4% of all complaints and accusations.

A prosecution official said, "In the 20th election, black propaganda offenders first surpassed bribery offenders, and a similar pattern was observed this time as well."

The election-dedicated investigation team, composed of the Public Investigation Division, Criminal Division, and Anti-Corruption Investigation Division of the nationwide prosecutors' offices, plans to maintain a special duty system until the statute of limitations expires on October 15.

A prosecution official stated, "We plan to investigate election cases involving key persons affecting the validity of election results, such as elected candidates, election office managers, accounting officers, and spouses of elected candidates, as quickly as possible. In particular, we will thoroughly investigate and strictly punish the three major focus areas: bribery, black propaganda and public opinion manipulation, and illegal election interference by public officials or organizations, including uncovering their backgrounds."

He added, "Important election crimes such as illegal election expenditure and violations of the Political Funds Act, which are booked after election day, will also be investigated directly by the prosecution in principle and handled strictly."

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